What Your Tour Guide Won’t Tell You About Cinque Terra 

 I visited Cinque Terra on a tour of Italy with friends from the Carolinas. We had planned only one day to visit the five villages. It was an absolutely glorious, yet overcast, day filled with stops at the beach, shopping and gawking at villagers and tourists. Because of bad weather a few days earlier, there…

Nepal’s “Living Goddess”: Kumari

Many nations have their beauty queens. In Nepal, the Kumari — or “Living Goddess” — takes female perfection to the highest level: worship. There are several Kumaris in Nepal who are worshiped by Hindu and Buddhist followers. These young women, chosen at ages ranging from four years old to seven, spend their youth adored as…