For the children of the Atule'er village in China, the journey to and from school is usually a matter of life and death, with a whole lot of vertigo in between. I'm not just saying that because walking to school in the wee hours can feel like a literal death grip, I'm saying that because their village is located at an altitude of 4600 feet, and the isolated nature of the village makes it staggeringly hard to get anywhere without risk.

According to officials, the life-threatening journey has resulted in the death of at least eight people over the years. If it rains or snows, the danger doubles.

The perils of the trek have also dissuaded some parents from sending their children to school even after they've reached school age.