My first Black Friday reminded me of pilgrimages back home in India

Author David Wise explains how electronic surveillance has made all that’s old new again in spycraft

For many Amazon pickers, you may have a job one day, but be out of work the next

Obama heckler talks about his life as an undocumented immigrant

A journalist tells her great-grandmother’s story as a ‘coolie woman’

Hundreds of millions of Chinese stubbornly resist speaking the ‘common tongue’

Black Friday? Around the world, bargain hunting takes many other forms

Music heard on air for November 28, 2013

Stay classy, Winnipeg! Ron Burgundy is coming to town

Saved by the Mangroves? A Philippine town dodges Haiyan’s storm surge

In post-Sandy New York, a Dutch architect pushes oysters, islands and inlets to fight future floods

This Israeli-Palestinian love story broke so many rules

A mother finds meaning in a Mogadishu nightmare

This war story has a happy ending, with Afghan and American ‘brothers’ sharing Thanksgiving

The NFL is moving the ball, but hasn’t yet scored, in China

Build your own Jurassic Park starting with Misty

Thanksgiving bridges cultures, but it’s not always pretty

Canadian folk phenom Basia Bulat performs from her new album ‘Tall Tall Shadow’

A deal with Iran could change lives, for workers in France

Music heard on air for November 27, 2013

Five tips for finding the perfect French baguette

A spicy sauce, an Israeli chef and one embarrassing dad? Happy Thanksgivukkah

So when did North Korea become a player in the blue meth trade?

A novelist finds ‘the Mexican girl’ from Jack Kerouac’s book On the Road

Amidst Syria’s civil war, women are on the frontline fighting for Kurdish rights

The US sends China a message with a couple of B-52 bombers

Planning on heading to Cuba over the holidays? Good luck

Transport yourself to the northeast of Brazil with the legendary music of Luiz Gonzaga

Pilgrims recall their first days in America as immigrants

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, and Robert Frost took the fork to stardom

Ukrainians find themselves stuck firmly between the EU and Russia

Here’s why the US dance with Iran will ultimately affect Afghanistan and Pakistan

‘The worst crisis most people have never heard of’ is in the Central African Republic

France reasserts itself in Africa, with fresh troops to a troubled Central African Republic

Straight outta ESL class: learning English by learning slang

Slam poetry brings honesty, and nervousness, to Jordan

Get introduced to the Zimbabwean Afro-fusion band Mokoomba

Music heard on air for November 26, 2013

In Syria, Kurds are fighting their own war against Islamists, and winning

Delhi’s LGBT Pride parade shows what a difference a decade can make in India

Iranian media find a rare, common voice in celebrating deal over its nuclear program

Music heard on air November 25, 2013

US allies in the Middle East are very nervous about the nuclear deal with Iran

A passionate ballerina turns at-risk kids in Peru into professional dancers

Storm expert says climate change may have played a big role in Typhoon Haiyan after all

Enough already with the cinnamon this holiday season

Stunning photos document the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan

Iranian citizens deserve some credit for the Iranian nuclear deal

Typhoon Haiyan forces an entire island community to relocate

On JFK’s last night, Texas Latinos celebrated him as one of their own

Here’s what else was going on in the world when Kennedy was assassinated

An Israeli memorial recalls Kennedy as the president who committed the US to Israel’s defense

What could the North Koreans be thinking?

Here’s the music that Americans wanted to hear after JFK’s death

JFK’s Peace Corps architect recalls one trip where he felt stalked by history

Music heard on air: November 22, 2013

JFK wanted the Peace Corps to create a generation of world-savvy Americans

If you can’t beat ’em, flash mob ’em!

World Quiz — Where’s a post office with a view… of penguins?

A Lebanese nun argues the US and others are wrong about Syria and should negotiate peace