Over the past two weeks, in honour of the end-of-year holidays, we’ve shared some of the fourth-quarter stirrings from a few places around the world. Sikh pilgrimages, Orthodox Christmas, Eid in the Maldives and more. We’ve offered our top five picks of places where you can tap into a mystical vibe if you’re not already adept at just finding the spiritual experience in all travel. Even after all that, we still had a few items on our list that we wanted to share.

I peered into the dark, foul-smelling room. Down on all fours, pacing back and forth in anxiety, the victim awaited his death sentence. About 15 paces away, standing in front of a dirty wooden shed, holding a sharpened knife and dressed in a bloody apron was the stoic old executioner flanked by his young wild-eyed henchmen. I hadn’t realised what I was getting myself into months earlier when I accepted my friend’s invitation to a “very special family event in the countryside.” Her devilish grin should have tipped me off, but the dea of a traditional Czech pig-killing feast, or zabíjačka, really intrigued me.

As one of the most popular mini-break destinations in Europe, Prague is weighed down with an abundance of souvenir shops and markets offering goods of varying qualities and authenticity. Sifting through the cheap imitations and tourist tat to uncover that bona fide little piece of Prague can be a daunting prospect. Fortunately, there are several gifts that are worthy of your hard-earned cash.

Classical music is as integral to the Prague experience as beer, goulash or a stroll across Charles Bridge, and just as big a draw for visitors. As Mozart famously once said when explaining his symbiotic love affair with his adopted home: ‘My Praguers understand me’ (‘Meine Prager verstehen mich’). In fact, his Symphony no 38…