Ah Long spent years building a life in Shanghai. Then the pandemic arrived. China's Zero-COVID policy cost him his job, his relationship, and eventually his faith that he could build a future there. So he did something almost unimaginable: he set out alone for the United States, crossing the Darién Gap, surviving robberies, and surrendering[...]

A few hours outside Bogotá, a giant yellow circus tent rises above the countryside. Inside, families laugh at clowns, gasp at acrobats, and cheer for trapeze artists soaring overhead. The performers are all members of the Colombian military. For more than three decades, Circo Colombia has sent active-duty soldiers across the country to perform for[...]