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Travel

The 29 Can’t-Miss Summer Festivals of 2016

Get out and enjoy the summer sun—we’ve compiled a list of the best ways to enjoy the summer splendor across North America

"Lux Noctis" is a series of photographs depicting landscapes of North America within the framework of traditional landscape photography, influenced by ideas of planetary exploration,19th-century Romantic painting and science fiction | Bisti Badlands, New Mexico

Photo Contest Featured Photographer

These Drone-Lit Photos of the American West Are Straight Out of a Science Fiction Novel

Photographer Reuben Wu casts new light on a familiar world

Bower by Martin Puryear, 1980, Sitka spruce, pine, and copper tacks

Martin Puryear’s Hometown Retrospective Brings the World Renowned Artist Back to His Roots

After treks to Africa, Scandinavia and Japan, Puryear’s works go on display at the Smithsonian, where he first developed his curiosity for world cultures

Pozzi and her team at the Washed Ashore project, achieve a remarkable and convincing array of textures.

Age of Humans

There’s a Bunch of Animals at the Zoo this Summer Made Out of Ocean Garbage

Delightfully whimsical, the sculptures drive home the message that there’s a whole lot of trash washing ashore

A skin affliction on display at the Moulage Museum.

See Over 2,000 Wax Models of Skin Diseases at This Swiss Medical Moulage Museum

It’s hard to look, and hard to look away, at this unique, and medically valuable, collection of wax blisters, hives and sores

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Sponsor Content: Taiwan

10 Must-See Places in Taiwan

Discover Taiwan, from the capital city of Taipei to stunning Taroko Gorge and Sun Moon Lake

Studying Bacon Has Led One Smithsonian Scholar to New Insights on the Daily Life of Enslaved African-Americans

At Camp Bacon, a thinking person’s antidote to excess, historians, filmmakers and chefs gather to pay homage to the hog and its culinary renown

Top Destinations for the Cultural Traveler: Taiwan

From mountains to sea, Smithsonian.com’s guide to Taiwan

Enlightened Hawaiian chiefs as far back as the 14th century instituted what is called the moku-ahupua‘a system of management throughout the islands.

Finding Lessons on Culture and Conservation at the End of the Road in Kauai

In the remote, tropical paradise called Ha‘ena, the community is reasserting Native Hawaiian stewardship of the land and sea

A worshiper burns incense.

Step Inside Taiwan’s Famous Longshan Temple

Founded nearly three centuries ago in Taipei, Longshan Temple survives as a bastion of local culture and center of religious life

At Modern Toilet, guests sit on toilets and eat out of bathroom appliance-shaped dinnerware.

Explore Taiwan’s Unique Themed Restaurant Culture

Themed restaurants take Taiwan by storm

Beitou District

Soak Up Taiwan’s Hot Springs Culture in These Five Natural Baths

A rejuvenating soak has long been a vital part of Taiwanese culture. Here are some of the top places to take a dip.

Dorset Horn sheep are one of eight heritage livestock breeds currently living at SVF. The gene bank currently contains 30 breeds.

For One Day Only, Visit the Farm and Cryogenics Laboratory Trying to Save Endangered Livestock Breeds

Enjoy a farm tour, cryogenics demonstration and a heritage-breed beef burger at Newport, Rhode Island’s Swiss Village Farm

Burger King sauna

This Burger King Has a Spa Now

Finnish designer Teuvo Loman adds a 15-person sauna to a Burger King storefront

Portraits of Infamy by Roger Shimomura, 2016

Commentary

The Public Puts Great Trust in Museums, and Now It’s Time Museums Trust the Public

A new exhibition, curated by the community, debuts this weekend at the Smithsonian

Inside Alabama’s Abandoned Buildings

As Birmingham flourishes again, an urban explorer documents what is left behind

"One of the first questions I ask myself," says Washington, D.C.-based artist Linn Meyers is, "'How well can I approach the quirks of the architecture?'"

The Mesmerizing Results When a Museum Asks an Artist to Draw All Over Its Walls

Linn Meyers took on the monumental task of creating a 400-foot-long artwork at the Hirshhorn

The Dueling Oaks in New Orleans' City Park

Discover America’s Bloody History at Five Famous Dueling Grounds

Men defended their delicate honor at these bloody sites across the U.S.

You Can Now Spend the Night in the Eiffel Tower

Be the first to spend the night in the night at this Parisian landmark

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