Nine years ago, Tom Carter traveled from San Francisco to China, responding to a job posting that turned out to be a scam. He managed to find another job as a teacher, and saved enough money to embark on a 56,000 km trip through all of China's 33 provinces that lasted two years. Carrying a camera – just a a 4-megapixel point-and-shoot – Carter captured some amazing images of the widely varying landscape, people, and architecture across the nation. Photo: Buddhist pilgrim family from Sichuan. (Photo by Tom Carter via The Atlantic)

This photo released by the Cleveland Animal Protective League shows Lurleen, the nursing mother and Noland the puppy snuggling up Wednesday, June 19, 2013, in Cleveland. Lurleen already is caring for four newborn kittens and now is nursing the orphaned week-old pit bull puppy in Cleveland. (Photo by AP Photo/Cleveland Animal Protective League)

A 16-meter-high snowman is nearly completed by the Songhua River in Harbin City, northeast China's Heilongjiang Province on December 7, 2022. (Photo by Rex Features/Shutterstock)

A woman in costume stands on the street during pre-Halloween weekend party in Shanghai, China on October 28, 2023. During the last weekend before Halloween, which comes on Tuesday, 31 October 2023, hundreds of youngsters dressed in costumes overwhelmed the streets of Shanghai. Halloween in China become popular due to the influences of Western expats and foreign teachers. (Photo by Alex Plavevski/EPA/EFE)

Models pose during the Paul Costelloe Presentation during London Fashion Week September 2021 on September 17, 2021 in London, England. (Photo by Matt Crossick/Empics Entertainment/Getty Images)

A woman fills her ballot paper during the State Duma, the Lower House of the Russian Parliament and local parliaments elections at a polling station in St. Petersburg, Russia, Friday, September 17, 2021. (Photo by Dmitri Lovetsky/AP Photo)

A cat wearing a dress is carried around in a transparent rucksack at the annual Pet Expo Thailand 2021 in Bangkok on November 25, 2021. (Photo by Jack Taylor/AFP Photo)

A tourist pauses for photos with her mask on at Sensoji Temple Thursday, January 30, 2020, in Tokyo. The country began evacuating Japanese citizens on Wednesday from the Chinese city Wuhan hardest-hit by the virus. (Photo by Jae C. Hong/AP Photo)