WELCOME STRANGER

We foster global citizenship through storytelling that brings you new perspectives from around the world. Centered on local voices, each of our guides takes you to a new location, through stories on literature and sports to social movements and history.

Join us on the journey.

WELCOME STRANGER

Ireland

Portrait of a Pub

Progress and procrastination at Dublin's infamous Grogan’s Castle Lounge

by
Grogan’s is a public house on South William Street in Dublin. Centrally located, it would not stand out from other bars in the city if not for one thing: the people who work and drink there, known as the Groganites. In the early ’70s, when Paddy Kennedy and Tommy Smith bought the premises, Dublin City Centre was a ghost town, especially in the evenings. The owner of any business sets ...

Bogotá

The Street: Bogotá, 1960

Never-before-translated vignettes on city-life by a young Gabriel García Márquez

by Gabriel García Márquez, translated by José Vargas
In 1960 the Camacho Roldan Bookstore published a series of books under the title Colombia: Country ...

Ireland

So Long Out of Ireland

Teaching storytelling as a national tradition

by Colum McCann
I have been out of Ireland for many years, but in fact, I have never left. ...

Bogotá

My Sensational Drama Queen

An ode to Bogotá

by Juli Delgado Lopera
We are publishing this essay on contemporary Bogotá alongside a mid-century portrait of the city written by ...

Mediterranean

Disorganized Crime

How the Albanian mafia went global

by Alex Hannaford
The takedown happened over five days in the chilly spring of 2009 in suburban New Jersey. ...

Spain

The Keepers of Flamenco

How a Roma tradition became one of Spain's most famous exports

by Christina Zanfagna with Anya de Marie
Flamenco shoes of all colors lined the walls of the Gallardo store like rows of candy. ...

Moscow

Russia’s Hip-Hop Underground

How an uncensored strain of rap is mounting a fight for free expression

by Michael Idov
Last summer at Moscow’s Flacon, a former Soviet crystal factory converted into a hub of hipster ...

Caribbean

My Father’s Land

The indelible marks of slavery in Jamaica

by Courtney Desiree Morris
Where are your monuments, your battles, martyrs? Where is your tribal memory? Sirs, in that grey ...

California

Desert Pilgrims

The wild characters drawn to Joshua Tree and Death Valley

by Colin Dickey
On a late spring evening, I am walking through Joshua Tree National Park with Ken Layne, ...

Caribbean

Hispaniola

The tense border of the Dominican Republic and Haiti

by Joshua Jelly-Schapiro
High in the steep, green mountains of central Hispaniola, near the long and porous border that ...

Texas

We asked six influential Texans: What’s next for Texas?

Dan Rather, Earl Campbell, Adrian Quesada, Lina Hidalgo, Cruz Ortiz and C.K. Chin on the future of sports, arts, music, restaurants, public health and

by Stranger’s Guide
Texas shows the country its own future. Whether it’s demographic shifts, climate change or even space ...

Lagos

The Kuti Legacy

Femi Kuti on politics, family and the future of Nigerian music

by
A uniquely congenial atmosphere welcomes visitors to The New Afrika Shrine in the Ikeja area of ...

Did You Know?

India

Photo credit: Aravindan Ganesan

Tea Workers Fight for Minimum Wage

Indian prime minister Narendra Modi often refers to himself as “Chaiwala” — the term for a tea-seller on the Indian subcontinent.  His father sold tea at a stall near Vadnagar railway station and when he was young, Modi too would help out. But according to the ACMS, the largest tea workers’ body in Assam province, Modi still hasn’t fulfilled his promise of a minimum wage for tea workers. According to the ACMS, Modi’s BJP government promised to increase the daily wage of workers on tea estates to Rs 350 ($4.95) per day. India’s The Economic Times says tea garden workers in Brahmaputra Valley currently earn Rs. 167 ($2.36) per day, while their colleagues in Barak Valley earn Rs. 145 ($2.05) per day.

Captivating stories that bring the world to you.

Stranger’s Guide brings international locations into new focus, commissioning stories from local writers and photographers to build authentic portraits of a place. We design our award-winning print guides, newsletters, carefully selected products and partnerships to combat stereotypes while expanding global citizenship.

▲