Visions

Costa Rica

Waking up on a tree branch near Guayacán de Siquirres, a red- eyed tree frog peers through a gold-striped, semitransparent eyelid. The scarlet eyes on this toxic, three-inch- long amphibian might be an example of startle coloration—a defense strategy some animals use to ward off predators.

Bulgaria

Fatme Inus wears face paint, tinsel, and many- hued sequins on her wedding day in Ribnovo. The colorful tradition, which symbolizes sta- tus change, is called gelina. It’s practiced by Bulgarian-speaking Muslims—also known as Pomaks—whose wed- ding celebrations span two days and involve hundreds of villagers.

China

Seen from a flowering hillside, the Honghe Hani Rice Terraces are
a mosaic of color: green shrubs, red duckweed, and blue sky reflected in the irrigated fields. The Hani people have farmed these 41,000 acres— now a World Heritage site—on the slopes of the Ailao Mountains for 13 centuries.