Cultural Traveler

The grand hall of the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History in New Haven, Connecticut—the wellspring of some the most distinguished scholarship of our times.

The Scientific Daredevils Who Made Yale's Peabody Museum a National Treasure

When an award-winning science writer dug into the backstory of this New Haven institute, he found a world of scientific derring-do

Cow trekking at Bolderhof.

Europe

Save a Horse, Ride a Cow Through the Swiss Alps

A farm in Switzerland offers a slow moo-tion ride through the alpine countryside

Reindeer races at the Sami Easter Festival.

In Northern Norway, Reindeer Racing and a "Joik" Singing Showdown Welcome in Spring

The Sami Easter Festival blends old and new traditions in Lappland's northern reaches

Dogs of the St. Bernard Hospice during a walk organized by their trainers with tourists.

Switzerland

A Brief History of the St. Bernard Rescue Dog

The canine's evolution from hospice hound to household companion

One hundred and eleven new buildings were constructed in the downtown area between 1931 and 1933. The vast majority took their cues from Art Deco, the era’s cutting-edge architectural trend.

How an Earthquake Turned This New Zealand Town into the Art Deco Capital of the World

Napier turned its tragic past into an architectural wonder

A modern baptismal rite takes place in the same Paravur pond in which the Apostle Thomas reputedly baptized Indian nobility in the first century.

Smithsonian Journeys Travel Quarterly: India

The Surprisingly Early History of Christianity in India

Modern Syrian Christians of Kerala believe that the Apostle Thomas visited in A.D. 52 to baptize their ancestors

Guests of an AirBNB designed as a tie-in to the Art Institute of Chicago's Van Gogh's Bedrooms exhibit can inhabit an exact replica of the artist's second bedroom painting.

Step Into Van Gogh's Brilliant Bedroom

Art Institute of Chicago brings the famous painter's personal space to life

Onlookers crowd King Street in Alexandria, recently named America's most romantic city.

What's America's Most Romantic City?

A new Amazon.com list finds true love in Alexandria, Virginia

A man stretches into a west-facing extension known as paschimattanasana with his son perched on his back in padmasana, or lotus pose | Varanasi

Smithsonian Journeys Travel Quarterly: India

Mind (and Body) Bending Photos Pay Homage to Yoga's Classical Lineage

Photographer Michael O'Neill spent a decade documenting the practice that saved his life

All of the rooms at Adobe House have private entrances.

Looking for a Winter Getaway? Visit the Sunniest Place on Earth

A literal oasis in the desert, Yuma, Arizona, the “winter vegetable capital of the world,” offers a warm welcome

The Rocky Mountaineer traverses through the Canadian Rockies.

The World's Most Scenic Train Rides

These train rides offer passengers views of some of the world's most stunning landscapes

At 122 feet long, The Titanosaur has to poke its tiny head out of the entryway to fit in the exhibit hall.

Here's How You Squeeze the Biggest Dinosaur Into a New York City Museum

A team of specialists had to get creative to mount a towering Titanosaur inside the American Museum of Natural History

12 Secrets of New York's Central Park

Learn some little-known facts about this NYC landmark

Dr. Maxime Aubert, archeologist and geochemist, uses his headlamp to examine the cave art at Leang Lompoa in Maros, Indonesia.

A Journey to the Oldest Cave Paintings in the World

The discovery in a remote part of Indonesia has scholars rethinking the origins of art—and of humanity

Dawe says he loved having to work with the Renwick building’s 19th-century architectural details as a backdrop.

The Renwick Reopens

Artist Gabriel Dawe Made a Rainbow Out of 60 Miles of Thread

The artwork is an optical illusion that delights the senses; as if the artist embroidered the air

Europe

The Real-Life Places That Inspired Frankenstein

How Mary Shelley used ideas, events and places to invent her famous monster

Smithsonian Journeys Travel Quarterly: Venice

What to Read, Watch and Download Before Your Trip to Venice

Know before you go

None

Is the World Empty? Or Overcrowded? It's Both

This interactive map takes you to the world's densest and most remote locales

From the road, it would be easy to overlook this small, unassuming chapel located in one of the oldest towns in southwestern Poland. But the wooden doors hide a spectacular, macabre interior. The skulls and leg bones of over 3,000 victims of wars and plagues cover the walls and ceiling, and a crypt below, accessible through a trapdoor, houses over 21,000 additional remains. Between 1776 and 1804, the local priest, Vaclav Tomasek, painstakingly gathered, cleaned and carefully arranged skeletons recovered from numerous, shallow mass graves left by the Thirty Years’ War, Silesian Wars and cholera outbreaks. Modeled off of similar ossuaries and catacombs in Rome, the chapel was intended as a shrine for the dead, as well as a “memento mori” for the living. On the church’s altar, Tomasek placed the bones of important figures and curiosities, including the skull of the local mayor, skulls with bullet holes, a skull deformed by syphilis and the bones of a supposed giant. When the chapel's creator passed away in 1804, his skull was placed on the altar as well. View the photos above or explore the 360° interactive panorama on Kaplica Czaszek’s official site (in Polish).

This Beautiful Chapel in Czermna, Poland, Is Constructed Out of Thousands of Human Bones

Shin bones decorate the ceiling, skulls line the walls and over 21,000 bodies are buried in the basement

Oklahoma Joe’s barbecue ribs

Washington, D.C.

The 20 Most Iconic Food Destinations Across America

Every city has that one place that tourists and locals alike go to for local flavor. Which one is the best?

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