Life

Myanmar poet San Nyein Oo -- now living in exile -- reads a statement of condolence from the local poets' union for Thet Naing Win, who was shot and killed by security forces during protests against the military takeover, in Mandalay, Myanmar, on Feb. 23, 2021. (Getty Images)
Life

Myanmar poets speak out from the front lines of protest

Repression burnishes survivor's guilt and creative resistance

20 May 2022
The newly reopened Maya Bay -- famously featured in the Leonardo DiCaprio movie "The Beach" (2000) -- limits the number of visitors per hour to 300. (All photos by Tom Vater)
Life

Two decades on, 'The Beach' faces fresh problems

Thailand's iconic Maya Bay, battered by mass tourism, attempts a comeback

18 May 2022
On the Myanmar side of the border with Thailand, the ordination hall at the Wah Fah Waing Inn monastery now sits atop a fortified base. (All photos by Lorcan Lovett)
Life

Guns, not monks, at monastery on Myanmar's Thai border

Refugees and orphan monks live meters from the army they escaped

11 May 2022
At the time of completion in 1964, the cable-suspension roof at Kenzo Tange's Yoyogi National Gymnasium was the largest of its kind. (Photo by James Hand-Cukierman)
Life

12 glorious highlights in Tokyo's constellation of starchitecture

The mind-bending vision of Japan's world-leading architects

10 May 2022
A statue of Indonesian President Joko Widodo on a motorbike at the entrance of the Mandalika MotoGP course on the resort island of Lombok. (Photos by Ian Neubauer)
Sports

Indonesia wins with return of the motorcycle Grand Prix

Race offered a much-needed boost for the local economy

8 May 2022
“This isn’t like regular badminton,” says Irina Inozemtseva, co-founder of Kuala Lumpur's Shuttle in The Dark. “We want people to come out of their comfort zones.”
Life

A neon twist on Malaysia's favorite sport

Kuala Lumpur club has big dreams for glow-in-the-dark badminton

27 April 2022
The Marufukuro remains an art deco standout in this otherwise quiet residential neighborhood
Life

Kyoto's Marufukuro: the boutique hotel that cards built

Nintendo’s former headquarters receives playful makeover by Tadao Ando

27 April 2022
Members of the LGBT community and supporters march in Tokyo's Shibuya district during the Tokyo Rainbow Pride parade on April 24. (Photo by Ken Kobayashi)
Life

Less talk, more action: Tokyo Rainbow Pride's call to arms

Defiant marchers express dismay over lack of progress on LGBT rights

26 April 2022
India currently accounts for 1% of the $225 billion global pet care industry, but with an annual growth rate of 17%, it is the world's fastest-growing market and is expected to be valued at around $500 million by the end of this year.
Life

Aspirational millennials give Indian dogs a luxury upgrade

From spas to psychics, booming pet industry is about more than food and grooming

24 April 2022
Pimsiri Sirikaew of Thailand focuses during the Women's 58 kg weightlifting competition at the 2016 Rio Olympics in August 2016. She took home the silver medal that year, as well as four years earlier at the London Games.
Life

Thailand's female weightlifters defy gender expectations

Athletes face stumbling blocks away from the Olympic platform

22 April 2022
Naomi Osaka hits a forehand in the women's singles final in the Miami Open at Hard Rock Stadium.
Sports

Inside Team Naomi: How Japan's tennis superstar climbed to top

Tight-knit professionals keep Osaka's tennis, business machine rolling

9 April 2022
A family crosses a river as they flee from Myanmar army attacks in Kayin State last December. (Courtesy of Free Burma Rangers)
Life

No end in sight for Myanmar's Karen insurgency

Military takeover has reignited the ethnic minority group's seven-decade revolt

8 April 2022
Icon Award winner Jeong Kwan shows off fresh produce she grows in her gardens at Baekyangsa Temple in South Korea. (Courtesy of Davin Park)
Life

Asia's newest celebrity chef elevates Korean temple food

From her mountain haven, Jeong Kwan's vegetarian cuisine reaches across the world

1 April 2022
Kyoto's Takase Canal was first completed in 1614. (Photo by Yuki Murakami)
Life

Nintendo heir rescues scenic Kyoto canal with $2.5m donation

Historic waterway to complete renovation work stalled by city budget crunch

24 March 2022
Female students attend a clandestine English lesson in Kabul. After the Taliban took control of the government and placed restrictions on education for women and girls, the teachers at this school decided to help their former students continue their studies in secret. (Photo by Sara Perria)
Life

Secret schools keep Afghan girls learning

Rule-breaking teachers defy Taliban to provide lessons

23 March 2022
Wildlife for sale last year at a market in Khammouane Province, Laos. (Courtesy of WWF-Greater Mekong)
16 March 2022
Elbridge Colby's book makes a valuable contribution to the most important geopolitical issue of the coming decades -- China's push for hegemony in Asia and U.S.-led efforts to contain the rising giant. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Yale University Press, U.S. Department of Defense)
Life

Books: A potential Sino-American conflict can be avoided

Noted strategist offers road map that addresses the needs of Beijing and Washington

12 March 2022
As sake gains popularity in Taiwan, more people are discovering its versatility when paired with food. (Courtesy of the Wufeng Farmers' Association Winery)  
Life

Taiwan sake boom starts to challenge Japanese traditions

Local producers face quality hurdles in the premium market

11 March 2022
Lena Bumiller-Klathale, her husband Suriyan "Hook" Klathale and their son Noah aboard their kabang houseboat in Thailand. The traditional boats are used by the Moken, a nomadic Austronesian group community that has traveled the Andaman Sea coast of Thailand and Myanmar for centuries, living off the ocean and the coastal forest. (All photos by Tom Vater)
Life

Headwinds buffet Thailand's 'sea nomads'

Multicultural couple shine light on Thailand's disenfranchised Moken minority

9 March 2022
The "World According to China" is a well-timed look at how Xi's agenda has shifted from neutralizing real or perceived political rivals while consolidating power to one that is insular, yet seeks to influence the outside world and expand China's territorial claims.
Life

Books: Adding nuance to the China discourse

Elizabeth Economy offers a crash course in how Beijing views the world

1 March 2022
Harija, 6, lives with her parents and five siblings in a tiny two-room house made of compacted earth in a remote desert community in Jawzjan, northern Afghanistan. Her family cannot afford enough food and survives on just bread.
Life

Children on the edge of life: Afghanistan's innocent victims

Stark images highlight the youngest casualties of the crisis

28 February 2022
Naomi Osaka during a news conference after losing her third-round match against Amanda Anisimova of the U.S. at the Australian Open on Jan. 21.
Sports

This is Naomi: A journey to overcome fear of losing

Tennis player finds social media to be a great outlet for expression

26 February 2022
A man sits at the entrance of his shop in Kabul on Feb. 8.
Life

Food aplenty in Kabul's shops, but few buyers

Taliban make women cover up, while their soldiers chase anti-lice creams

23 February 2022
Leading Vietnam's coffee renaissance has been Future Coffee Farm founder Toi Nguyen, whose plantation around 180 kilometers from Ho Chi Minh City has become an inspiration to new coffee farmers with grand ambitions of affecting coffee perceptions around the world. (Photo by Mervin Lee)
Life

Tasting the future of coffee in Vietnam

Now a key producer, the country's global stature is growing rapidly

19 February 2022
Dilapidated but architecturally interesting row houses in the Japanese port city of Nakamachi, Mie Prefecture. (Photo by Stephen Mansfield)
Life

A small Japanese city draws on creativity in fighting decline

Citizens band together to revive a historic urban center

18 February 2022