Hollywood, London, Paris, the diva lived in many cities. She was born on 27 december 1901 in Berlin and it is here that she began her career that made her world famous. A stroll in the footsteps of the German actress.

Fashion is fleeting, they say. And judging from some of the creations that were sent down the runway this year (and caused a storm on social media), some of us may be glad not to see any of these trends endure.

I’ve always admired mountains from afar but never imagined that one day I’d be part of the first female expedition of Pakistan to scale the approximately 5720 m Baaushal Peak!

Text and pictures: Anam Gill (Ed.: Brenda Haas)

I hadn’t paid much attention to the British royal family in years, not since Princess Diana’s death. It had kind of slipped away into an elite world of pop-cultural irrelevance, popping up on my newsfeed only when Prince Harry went partying or to Africa for a visit.

Women triumphed for the first time in the Migrant Worker Poetry Competition in Singapore, as female domestic workers came in first, second and third in its fourth edition on Sunday, December 3. Like many other domestic workers, after her 14-hour work day, Indonesian domestic worker Deni Apriyani retreats to her room in Singapore and reaches for a pen to jot down her feelings, in poem after poem.

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I grew up in Apartheid South Africa, but I also experienced it change into a democracy.

It’s really crazy how the system of apartheid didn’t just oppress people based on the color of their skin, but also turned ethnic groups against another. White supremacy also fueled the way we perceived beauty. I remember, year after year, watching Miss South Africa beauty pageants and being in awe as tall, white and blonde women almost always became the prized queens of the pageant. And I remember how ugly it made me feel that I would never be considered ‘beautiful’ if beauty pageants, Barbie dolls and models on the covers of magazines were anything to go by.

Her hair is tied up in a top knot. Thick kohl lines her eyes up to the temples. Her forehead is painted in red, with a silver agni chakchuu – the third eye, which is known as the fire eye – staring out from the center. She sits playfully on her mother’s lap while one by one people kneel down to offer her flowers, donations or simply to touch her feet. She appears shy to me, as if not used to receiving strangers. Despite the shyness, her eyes sparkle with curiosity.