Drug Ritual is ‘Biologically Explosive’ During COVID

Plus, Have Archaeologists Found History's Deadliest Dance Floor? [Subscribe]( [View in browser]( [Image] [Image] The entire world in your inbox. Hello all— I hope you’re all keeping well. If you’re like me, you’re probably monitoring vaccination rates across the U.S. daily. In my home city of D.C., vaccinations have been opened up to all residents 65 and older, a hopeful sign that the rollout is ramping up—and thus getting us closer to being able to travel the world again. This [week’s lead feature]( is a serious but fun one. Mark Hay reports on what ayahuasca centers have been up to during the pandemic. As you can imagine, in addition to some people trying to do the right thing, [he uncovered]( many not so wonderful people gone astray in a community often rife with pseudoscience. I also want to highlight [Candida Moss’s column on the potential discovery of the dance floor where Salome]( won the rights to John the Baptist’s head. Like all classic Moss columns, it manages to titillate with some serious nerd porn, but leaves you pondering the bigger picture. In other travel news this week, Boeing [was fined $2.5 billion]( by the Department of Justice for choosing “profit over candor”—a result that comes as no surprise to many of you who have kept up with [Clive Irving’s superb reporting]( over the past couple years. Nor is it surprising that another sketchy airline in Indonesia [has had a tragic deadly crash](. — [William O’Connor](, Travel Editor [Image] [Drug Ritual is ‘Biologically Explosive’ During COVID. Some Devotees Don't Care.]( [With the pandemic still raging—in some places, worse than ever before—the world of ayahuasca centers dabbling in pseudo-science has led to some bizarre and dangerous choices.]( [Have Archaeologists Found History's Deadliest Dance Floor?]( [Archeologists working in Machaerus, in Israel, have allegedly discovered the site of Salome’s famous dance that cost John the Baptist his head.]( [King Arthur’s Camelot Castle is Now Ground Zero for Brit QAnon]( [The English West Country has long been home to ancient legends and New Age mysticism. Now, it harbors a darker, dangerous set of beliefs.]( [Kyoto Is Still Full of Magic and Mystery]( [Despite the crushing advance of modernity, Japan’s former capital retains its age-old mystery and charm.]( [The Down Blanket from Rumpl Will Be My Outdoor Dining Companion This Year]( [ ]( Made with sustainable duck down and a water-resistant finish, this is the ultimate blanket for whatever you’re doing this year. Whether you have camping plans, or just plan on dining outside in the winter, the Rumpl is a blanket everyone should have on hand. It’s great to sit on for [picnics](, thanks to its puffiness and water resistance, and if you are braving th elements for an outdoor dining experience, it. more or less acts like a puffer coat for your legs, without the bulk. The Rumpl is the perfect companion for those of us that just want to be comfortable no matter what. [BUY ON RUMPL ]( [“](A seasoned lion killer, he led the warriors stealthily through the chaparral and waited behind a tree until the lions fell asleep. With adrenaline surging, they leaped from the cover of the bush, sprinted for the lions, and attacked them with their spears. The startled lions fought back, snarling, lunging, and roaring at the warriors. But as they roared, Kamunu’s hunting party knew to stab the animals in their open mouths, puncturing their organs and causing them to bleed internally. The lions hissed, choked, and coughed up blood, until finally collapsing.[”]( ——in [an excerpt from his new book,]( Andrew Dubbins tells the tale of famed Maasai lion hunters who now protect the animals. [Travel to Turn-of-the-Century Italy]( While its cities and villages may have been millenia old, at the turn of the century, Italy was still a new nation. This gigantic book is full of mesmerizing photochromes and prints transporting readers to the streets of the booming cities tourists love so much today. Narrow alleys lined with crumbling buildings are juxtaposed with the fashionable palaces and hotels springing up to service the wealthy of the industrial era. Horses and buggies (and trolley tracks), not cars, crowd the cobblestone streets. Fishermen and families work the banks of the Tiber. Remarkably little has changed in iconic museums like the Bargello, and the impeccably detailed portraits by Bronzino still hang in the Uffizi. But perhaps the most enjoyable are the pictures of Venice with its decaying decadent palaces and labyrinthian streets—free of tourist hordes and cruise ships looming in the horizon. [Italy Around 1900: A Portait in Color]( by Giovanni Fanelli, Marc Walter, and Sabine Arqué. Published by Taschen. ($200) Check out our previous selections for our series on gorgeous travel-related coffee table books, [Just Booked](. [BUY ON ASSOULINE >>]( Please note that if you buy something featured in one of our posts or newsletters, The Daily Beast may collect a share of sales. © Copyright 2021 The Daily Beast Company LLC 555 W. 18th Street, New York NY 10011 [Privacy Policy]( If you are on a mobile device or cannot view the images in this message, [click here to view this email in your browser](. To ensure delivery of these emails, please add emails@thedailybeast.com to your address book. 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