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I own more books by Joan Didion than I can count. Some are in my dorm room, piled on my window sill overlooking East Tenth Street. Some are on my IKEA bookshelf at my family home in the suburbs of New York. It’s as if these books are children living in a split custody situation. […]
Post Archive
Hawaii needs more Japanese tourists to counter economic slowdown
Honolulu, HI – The number of Japanese visitors in Hawaii hasn’t returned to pre-pandemic levels, which is weighing heavily on the state’s economy. While the yen’s recent rebound eased the burden of traveling for the Japanese tourists, three years of Covid restrictions in Japan – even after they’ve been lifted – seem to overshadow this […]
Mongolia’s Tuvan reindeer herders
Photos by Andrew Califf There is a small section of taiga [boreal forest] surrounding the Darkhad Depression in northern Mongolia that is home to a niche community of Tuvan reindeer herders. The border cuts them off from the Russian Tuvan Republic, which has exponentially better herding conditions, less hunting restrictions and more land for larger […]
Living as Transgender in the Czech Republic
“I’m not lying when I say half of the people here would prefer us dead,” said Chloe Monette of Czech society’s view on the transgender population. She is the founder and president of Jsem Trans, a Czech NGO committed to education and counseling for the transgender community. “This is a very stressful environment to live […]
Scrambling for Solutions to Stop the Spotted Lanternfly Invasion
The spotted lanternfly is invading New York, and so far, an array of countermeasures — from vacuums and insecticides to official recommendations to stomp the bugs on sight — don’t seem to be helping much. On a recent Sunday afternoon on a rooftop restaurant in Lower Manhattan, a swarm of the black-and-red winged plant-hoppers, originally from […]
This Brooklyn street personifies open street uncertainties heading into 2023
On Fifth Avenue Sundays in December, rows of eye-catching holiday displays and light shows cover entire building facades, welcoming shoppers as they walk shoulder-to-shoulder down an open street free of vehicles. But by 6 p.m., the New York Police Department slowly removes ten blocks of road barriers, herding shoppers back onto packed city sidewalks. Meanwhile, […]
Global dreams in Corona, Queens
An old Argentinian man stands on a table banging a drum wrapped around his waist, a drum stick in each hand. The wrinkles that line his forehead push together as his eyes widen. his curly black mullet bobs back and forth to his own rhythm and reveals a large bald spot on the top and […]
The Power of College Journalism
By Nandini Gupta and Julia Fhym Luna Washington Square News (WSN) is New York University’s student newspaper. They usually report on a range of stories including protests near NYU, adjunct unionization, and research done by professors. But this last October, the reporters at WSN held someone else accountable – The New York Times. Hear from […]
Afro-Costa Rican’s history of inequality & long road to Pura Vida
(Costa Rica) — For native Costa Ricans, the phrase “Pura Vida” loosely translates to “living life to the fullest” in English. However, Costa Ricans with African ancestry have been subjected to a far darker experience because of their hidden history, advocates say. For more than a century, the Afro-Costa Rican population has been subjected to […]
Kendama: Why is a traditional Japanese wooden toy getting so popular in the US?
Austin Donovan encountered a kendama for the first time when he was 14 years old in 2008. A friend in his art class took one to school and attracted a line of people who wanted to try a basic trick on this traditional Japanese wooden toy. Everyone, except for Donovan, just stared at the line […]