I went to Vevčani festival in rural North Macedonia. It is perhaps the wildest village festival in the Balkans.

Every Orthodox Christian New Year period villagers get dressed up as pagan characters, monsters or political figures, drink large amounts of rakia, then perform rituals and parade around the village.

It’s supposed to be an expression of independent spirit and free speech, but some think that the more extreme costumes are beyond the pale.

Episodes of Keep Going: An Unexpected Travel Podcast are currently coming out every two weeks, in the usual podcast places and with full videos on the pod's YouTube channel.

Subscribe to get episodes as soon as they land.

Writing, recording, narration: Jamie Fullerton

Sound editing: Samira Tazari

Music: Olguita Acuña

Podcast artwork: Nini Giunàshvili

Vevčani location: Google Maps

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Some bagpipes styles are intensely annoying, but Bulgaria’s kaba gaida style is low in tone, moody, spacey, almost gothic, and linked to rural life in the country for thousands of years.

Now new generations of Bulgarian bagpipers head deep into the Rhodope Mountains each year for a bagpipe festival and competition.

It’s part of a resurgence in folk arts in Bulgaria. Among the younger generations are bagpipes even… cool? I went to the Gela bagpipe festival.

Episodes of Keep Going: An Unexpected Travel Podcast are currently coming out every two weeks, in the usual podcast places and with full videos on the pod's YouTube channel.

Subscribe to get episodes as soon as they land.

Writing, recording, narration: Jamie Fullerton

Sound editing: Samira Tazari

Music: Olguita Acuña

Podcast artwork: Nini Giunàshvili

Gela, Bulgaria: Google Maps link

Nearby hotel: Monastery 2 Aparthotel

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Costa Rica has positioned itself as a successful eco-tourism destination, and tourists cascade into the country with ambitions to see sloths in the wild.

As more tourist infrastructure gets built, more of the famously lethargic-looking animals are getting injured and killed due to the development. Sloths are susceptible to species isolation caused by new roads and buildings cutting off treetop pathways.

A group of conservationists is taking action by shimmying up massive trees and putting up rope bridges for the sloths. I joined the team on a bridge-building mission.

Episodes of Keep Going: An Unexpected Travel Podcast are currently coming out every two weeks, in the usual podcast places and with full videos on the pod's YouTube channel.

Subscribe to get episodes as soon as they land.

Writing, recording, narration: Jamie Fullerton

Sound editing: Samira Tazari

Music: Olguita Acuña

Podcast artwork: Nini Giunàshvili

The Sloth Conservation Foundation: Slothconservation.org

Jaguar Rescue Center: Jaguarrescue.foundation

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.