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)

Jury member Nicole Kidman attends the Jury Press Conference. (Photo by Vittorio Zunino Celotto/Getty Images)

A Lion-Tailed macaque holds a big block of ice with a mix of frozen vegetables and fruit at the zoo in Leipzig, central Germany, Friday, July 19, 2013. Weather forecasts predict sunny weather and warm temperatures for Germany in the next few days. (Photo by Jens Meyer/AP Photo)

Pakistani truck drivers from different cities sit on the roof top of the buildings at Truck station offering Dua before breaking the fast during Holy month of Ramadan in Lahore on April 15, 2021. Ramadan is marked by daily fasting from dawn to sunset Islami's holy month of Ramadan-ul-Mubarak is celebrated by Muslims worldwide marked by fasting, abstaining from foods, sеx and smoking from dawn to dusk for soul cleansing and strengthening the spiritual bond between them and the Almighty. (Photo by Rana Sajid Hussain/Pacific Press/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

A pitch invader is seen on the pitch during the UEFA Euro 2020 Championship Group B match between Finland and Belgium at Saint Petersburg Stadium on June 21, 2021 in Saint Petersburg, Russia. (Photo by Kirill Kudryavtsev/Reuters)

South Korean tightrope walker Nam Chang-dong performs “Jultage” or Tightrope walking during the traditional festival “Dano” at Namsan Hanok village in Seoul, South Korea, 14 June 2021. The festival falls on the fifth day of the fifth month of the lunar calendar. Only 30 audience members were allowed to attend the performance amid the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Jeon Heon-Kyun/EPA/EFE)

Choo Gaeun of South Korea reacts during competition with Jin Jongoh of South Korea during the mixed 10m air pistol team qualification during Tokyo 2020 Olympics at Asaka Shooting Range in Tokyo, Japan on July 27, 2021. (Photo by Ann Wang/Reuters)

People wearing face masks to protect against the spread of the coronavirus walk on a crossing in Tokyo Tuesday, August 17, 2021. Japan’s coronavirus state of emergency will continue through Sept. 12 rather than finishing at the end of this month as initially planned, the government decided Monday. (Photo by Koji Sasahara/AP Photo)