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Alcazar Castle

Spain: Top Destinations

Top destinations in Spain.

Korda captured this iconic image of the Cuban revolutionary by chance.

Smithsonian Journeys Travel Quarterly: Cuba

The Story Behind Che’s Iconic Photo

Fashion photographer Alberto Korda took Che Guevara’s pictures hundreds of times in the 1960s. One stuck

Ian Marcos Gutiérrez, a 23-year-old printer at the Taller Experimental de Gráfica, in Havana, helps the author prepare a block of lithographic limestone for printing.

Step Inside Cuba’s Oldest Printmaking Studio

At the Taller Experimental de Gráfica in Havana, process is everything

Cape Floral Kingdom

South Africa: Top Destinations

Top destinations in South Africa.

Three Taíno Indian sisters pose during a family pig roast in eastern Cuba, where there’s a small but growing movement to explore the indigenous culture that Columbus encountered in 1492.

Smithsonian Journeys Travel Quarterly: Cuba

Searching for Cuba’s Pre-Columbian Roots

A newfound quest for identity has led some Cubans to reclaim their Taíno Indian heritage

Smithsonian Journeys Travel Quarterly: Cuba

A Brief History of the Rumba

Born out of slavery in 19th-century Cuba, the lively music and dance form takes many shapes

For nearly a decade, scuba divers have been going to the Finger Lakes to carve pumpkins underwater.

Underwater Pumpkin Carving Among the Wrecks in New York’s Finger Lakes

Just in time for Halloween, scuba divers test their Jack-o-lantern-making skills

Armenia

In One of the World’s Oldest Winemaking Regions, a New Generation Revives an Ancient Tradition

An Armenian wine expert highlights the best places to experience the rebirth of a wine culture stifled under Soviet rule

Tourists and Cubans gamble at the casino in the Hotel Nacional in Havana, 1957. Meyer Lansky, who led the U.S. mob’s exploitation of Cuba in the 1950s, set up a famous meeting of crime bosses at the hotel in 1946.

Smithsonian Journeys Travel Quarterly: Cuba

When the Mob Owned Cuba

Best-selling author T.J. English discusses the Mob’s profound influence on Cuban culture and politics in the 1950s

Transcaucasian Trail

Armenia

A Taste of the Wild Side: Finding Local Flavor in Armenia’s Edible Highlands

Holy card from the collection of Emilio Cueto

Smithsonian Journeys Travel Quarterly: Cuba

The Surprising History of Cuba’s Patron Saint

Nicknamed “Cachita,” the 15-inch-tall wooden figurine of the Virgin Mary unites Cubans across class and race lines

Dish with copper-red glaze, and a Xuande mark in cobalt oxide on the base, China, Jiangxi province, Jingdezhen Ming Dynasty, Xuande reign (1426-1435)

What a Mark Rothko Painting Has in Common With a Ming Dynasty Dish

This one vibrant color, rich in symbolism, unites two works across five centuries

The Last Living Carver of Mount Rushmore Reflects on the Monument at 75

The 95-year-old looks back at the colossal effort that went into making the American masterpiece

Woman in E by Ragnar Kjartansson, 2016

Why a Woman Is Playing the Same Guitar Chord Over and Over Again at the Hirshhorn

The absurdly comedic work of Iceland’s top performance artist Ragnar Kjartansson

Smithsonian Journeys Travel Quarterly: Cuba

Memories of a Runaway Cuban Slave

A former sugar plantation slave recalls fleeing to a cave in the woods and the new dangers that awaited him there

These women in traditional dress are preparing for a street performance in Havana. Despite laws guaranteeing racial equality, black Cubans are generally poorer than whites. And with fewer relatives abroad, they typically receive less in remittances.

Smithsonian Journeys Travel Quarterly: Cuba

There’s Much More to Cuba Than Cigars and Vintage Cars

The country’s most celebrated blogger discovers her homeland anew while working as a tour guide

During an initiation ceremony for the Afro-Cuban secret society called Abakuá in the Havana district of Regla, a young aspirant depicts Aberisún, an ireme, or spirit messenger.

Smithsonian Journeys Travel Quarterly: Cuba

Venture Inside Cuba’s Secret Societies

From Masons to Santería priests, photographer Nicola Lo Calzo offers a glimpse into the island’s many subcultures

Secrets of the Tower of London

Before it was a popular tourist attraction, the Tower of London was, well, just about everything else

Six Places on Earth That Scientists Say Look Like Other Planets

The eerie resemblance these locales have to Mars and beyond has attracted researchers for years

This Champion Pumpkin Weighs More Than a U-Haul

At the annual Half Moon Bay Pumpkin Weigh-In, a pumpkin weighing 1,910 pounds took the crown

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