What We Loved This Week, Dec. 11 – 17

Published December 16, 2016
Updated December 15, 2016

Light Festivals Around The World

Thailand

Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters via The AtlanticPeople release floating lanterns during the festival of Yee Peng in the northern capital of Chiang Mai, Thailand, on November 14, 2016.

As the year comes to a close, millions of people around the world have taken to light. Be it for religious rites, seasonal tributes, or purely reasons of aesthetics, this is the season of light festivals.

If you can’t trek across the planet to witness these warm visions for yourself, the Atlantic has compiled a great spread.

Milan

Luca Bruno/AP via The AtlanticA tourist boat sails as Christmas lights illuminate the Darsena dei Navigli, the neighborhood named for the canals that run through this area of Milan, Italy, on December 12, 2016.

Quito

Juan Cevallos/AFP/Getty via The AtlanticThe “La Merced” church, in the historical center of Quito, Ecuador, is illuminated during a light show on October 18, 2016.

Famous Funerals Even More Extravagant Than Fidel Castro’s

Diana Funeral

Wolfgang Rattay/Getty ImagesPrincess Diana’s funeral cost about $11.9 million.

Fidel Castro — the controversial former ruler of Cuba — was laid to rest recently after a four-day funeral procession across the country. With tens of thousands of mourners lining the streets and a 2.6 ton granite boulder used as a crypt, the magnitude of the event seemed proportional to the legacy of the 90-year-old man it honored.

But after looking at some of the most monumental, pricey, and truly weird funerals and memorials throughout history, Castro’s giant parade may seem almost understated.

Michael Jackson Funeral

Kevork Djansezian/Getty ImagesMichael Jackson’s funeral saw him buried in a $35,000 suit.

Pope John Paul

Joe Raedle/Getty ImagesApproximately 3 million people attended the funeral of Pope John Paul II.

author
All That's Interesting
author
A New York-based publisher established in 2010, All That's Interesting brings together subject-level experts in history, true crime, and science to share stories that illuminate our world.
editor
John Kuroski
editor
John Kuroski is the editorial director of All That's Interesting. He graduated from New York University with a degree in history, earning a place in the Phi Alpha Theta honor society for history students. An editor at All That's Interesting since 2015, his areas of interest include modern history and true crime.