Postcard from Palermo, Sicily: Gleaming mosaics of Monreale

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Above: Byzantine-style 12th-century mosaics relate Biblical stories inside the Cathedral of Monreale

Tired from a day of hunting in the woods of Monte Caputo above Palermo, King William II (1153-1189), later known as William the Good, lay down under the shady canopy of a carob tree. He was awakened from his nap by a vision of the Virgin Mary, and she requested he build a church on that very spot in her honor.

This meant the tree had to go, but, when it was chopped down, lo and behold, a golden treasure was found amongst the roots. Gold to fund the project. According to legend.

William the Good commissioned a mammoth church and a Benedictine abbey for Monreale. He gifted the church in honor of Santa Maria Nuova, a contributing factor to his reputation as good, forever distinguishing him from his father, referred to as King William the Wicked (1120-1166).

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Postcard from Oaxaca, Mexico: Always welcome more candles on your cake

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This woman’s anxious expression on a wall in Oaxaca is a bit frightening to have surfaced close to my birthday. I’ve decided to consider her as successfully defiant.

Some years are harder than others. The image below of the late Vicente Fernandez did not weather well this past year.

But walls in Oaxaca are everchanging canvases for artists, new discoveries encountered with every walk. As prints peel and fade, other layers soon are plastered over them – palimpsests of life.

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Postcards from Amsterdam, Netherlands: ‘Stories that Matter’ told by the brave

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Above: Names of journalists and photographers killed in the line of duty memorialized at the opening exhibition of the World Press Photo 2024 Awards in the Nieuwe Kerk Amsterdam

In the two decades since 2003, at least 1,668 journalists have lost their lives while trying to shed light on issues of importance to us all, according to Reporters without Borders. In 2023, another 45 names were added to that list. The list prominently displayed in Amsterdam’s New Cathedral for the opening of the World Press Photo 2024 Awards must have hit the photographers hard – names of coworkers and friends they have made while covering stories in danger zones throughout the world.

The Nieuwe Kerk is hardly “new,” having been consecrated in 1409. While the “Royal Church” is still used for royal weddings and coronations, it also serves as a venue for important exhibitions, such as this one. With its soaring vaulted ceiling, floors embedded with tombs and cherubs overlooking all, the dramatic setting emphasized the seriousness of the meaningful topics delved into by the award-winning photographers.

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