A little refreshing randomness from around the globe
‘Don’t try.’
This author of this warning soon became known, by some, as ‘the toughest man in New Orleans.’ This scrawling on the front of a boarded-up rug store, in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, was intimidating enough: the store went untouched by looters. Updates soon followed:
‘Still here. Woman left Friday. Cooking a pot of [...]
Camels are amazing creatures. They are the sharks of the deserts, perfectly adapted to their environment: their thick foot pads can withstand the scorching sand of the Sahara, their blood cells can survive wicked dehydration, and their scat is so thoroughly drained of precious water that it can be used as kindling for fires.
And in [...]
The Sahara is not well-known for its foliage.
But one tree did exist: the Tree of Ténéré. It was the last surviving member of the forest that once inhabited the region, and served as a landmark for travelers - the only landmark, really, in this vast swath of northeast Niger.
The tree was obviously getting water from [...]
In Zurich, they burn Old Man Winter in effigy.
His name is Böögg (from “Bogey”), and this is Sechselauten, the Six Ringing Festival, a Swiss holiday created in order to celebrate the Spring Equinox. Built on a wooden frame and stuffed with explosives, Frosty is carried into the Bellevue Platz, overlooking the lake, while getting solidly [...]
A saltwater aquarium in Berlin employs two full-time divers to clean it.
You cannot buy the world’s largest aquarium at your local pet store. The outer cylinder was assembled, on site at the Radisson SAS Hotel, in four separate pieces, while the interior cylinder was delivered ready-made. The AquaDom is also the largest acrylic cylinder in [...]
A zorb is a hamster ball for people.
Because people are more concerned than rodents about life and limb, a zorb is actually made up of two soft plastic spheres, one inside the other, like a bubble boy nesting doll. The outer layer takes all the impact, while the smaller, internal sphere protects the precious human [...]
Yuri Gagarin left the earth in 1961, from the middle of the Kazakh desert.
The Baikonur Cosmodrome was the Russian capital of space travel: 6717 square kilometers, dozens of launch pads, and a 1500-kilometer rocket test range. Spaceship parts would arrive by train. Nowadays, although still in service, the Russian space program is surrounded by acres [...]
The Eighth Wonder of the World has been built by a 57-year old former insurance broker.
This man had childhood visions of his past life in a lost civilization, and swore to rebuild what he saw. He first dug a trial tunnel under his own parents house to better understand the science of excavation, and later [...]
Right hook to left jaw. Checkmate.
Proponents describe chessboxing as the ultimate fusion sport for the body and the mind. For up to eleven rounds, a chessboxing match alternates between three-minute rounds of uppercuts and jabs, and four-minute rounds of studious, deliberate protection of your king.
Chessboxing is not a game for amateurs. Participants are required to [...]
In Bolivia’s San Pedro Prison, you rent your cell.
They can be quite nice, if you have the money. Well-off prisoners can enjoy televisions, private bathrooms, and kitchenettes. One drug baron, Barbachoca (’Redbeard’) added a second story so that he could see the mountains - although poorer inmates often live six to a room. In your [...]
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