Forget everything you think you know about carnivals. Bright feathers, samba drums, glittery floats? You won’t find them here. Instead, picture this: sweaty bodies painted in black grease, primal howls, wooden masks, jungle drums, and dancing that feels more like an ancient exorcism than a parade. Welcome to Carnaval de Tenosique — the weirdest carnival in Mexico, maybe even the world.

Deep within the lush rainforests of Central Kalimantan, the Dayak Ngaju people practice one of Indonesia's most sacred and mesmerizing ceremonies — the Tiwah. More than a funeral rite, the Tiwah is a powerful spiritual passage, a final act of love and duty performed by the living for the departed. In the eyes of the Dayak Ngaju, death is not the end; it is a long journey toward a better, eternal village in the spirit world, known as Lewu Tatau.