A pilgrim prays at Mount Al-Noor, where Muslims believe Prophet Mohammad received the first words of the Koran through Gabriel in the Hera cave, ahead of the annual haj pilgrimage in the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia September 7, 2016. (Photo by Ahmed Jadallah/Reuters)

Tibetan pilgrims walk outside the Sera Monastery in Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region, China, 11 September 2016. Sera Monastery is known as one of the “great three” Gelug university monasteries of Tibet founded in 1419. (Photo by How Hwee Young/EPA)

The Christian Siriano collection is modeled during Fashion Week, Thursday, February 6, 2020, in New York. (Photo by John Minchillo/AP Photo)

Pilgrims lift up their dresses as they cross the Quema river during the annual El Rocio pilgrimage in Villamanrique, near Sevilla on June 1, 2017. El Rocio pilgrimage is the largest in Spain with hundreds of thousands of devotees wearing traditional outfits converging in a burst of colour as they make their way on horseback and decorated carriages across the Andalusian countryside. (Photo by Cristina Quicler/AFP Photo)

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)

Pilgrims wearing traditional dresses take part during the Queen of Angeles pilgrimage in Alajar, southern Spain, September 8, 2015. Every year, devotees converge at the Arias Montano crag to pay homage to the Queen of Angeles during an annual pilgrimage which combines religious fervour and festive colour. (Photo by Marcelo del Pozo/Reuters)

An India Christian devotee reenacts the sufferings of Jesus Christ on the occasion of Good Friday in Mumbai, India, Friday, March 29, 2013. Christians all over the world are marking Good Friday, the day when Christ was crucified. (Photo by Rajanish Kakade/AP Photo)