Author: Ms. R.

The story of yerba mate, the potent, caffeinated elixir made from the shoots and leaves of a subtropical evergreen, runs from sacred ceremonies held centuries ago in what is now Paraguay to modern-day soccer players in Argentina, techno obsessives in Berlin, and dissidents in Syria. In The Book of Yerba Mate: A Stimulating History, Christine Folch traces the global evolution of a plant so valuable it was once used as a form of currency. As with other caffeine-rich plants,……

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Each week, Atlas Obscura is providing a new short excerpt from our upcoming book, Wild Life: An Explorer’s Guide to the World’s Living Wonders (September 17, 2024). The 60,000 books in the Joanine Library are all hundreds of years old. Keeping texts readable for that long, safe from mold and moisture and nibbling bugs, requires dedication. The library’s original architects designed 6-foot (1.8 meters) stone walls to keep out the elements. Employees dust all day, every day. And then……

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Ilé offers diners an immersive culinary journey through West Africa with its contemporary three-course tasting menu and family-style concept. This is not your typical restaurant experience. Instead, guests are welcomed into Chef Tolu Eros’ personal apartment in Hollywood, making for an intimate dining atmosphere. Upon arrival at the apartment complex, guests are directed to the leasing office, where a concierge escorts them to Eros’ private residence. As you stand outside the discrete apartment door, the sounds of lively chatter,……

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If you keep an eye out as you pass The House of Doors in Cheshire, Connecticut, you’ll spy a strapping, square-jawed depiction of Paul Bunyan looming incongruously over the landscape. This 26-foot-tall Muffler Man was erected to stand guard in front of a lumber business in the 1980s. In 2019, Paul Bunyan was temporarily removed for a minor refurbishment, then returned. His axe was replaced with an American flag due to a violation of town codes regarding its height, despite the……

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In the wake of the Christian Reformation in the 1500s, more than 40,000 people were executed on charges of witchcraft. If you look closely at the pavement in Antwerp, you’ll find a memorial to the victims hiding in plain sight.  As Catholicism and Protestantism jockeyed for religious dominance, many cities chose sides and some chose differently from those around them, resulting in sanctions or worse. When in such a situation something or someone had to be blamed blamed for……

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This curious five-tiered structure, which resembles a wedding cake in house form, has an unusual history behind it. In 1961, Jan Pol, a junk dealer, built the house as a ‘monument to injustice’ at the intersection of South Kent and Riverview roads in Gaylordsville. A spite house is a building erected with the intention of annoying neighbors. Supposedly, Pol adopted a baby girl with his then wife, but the state took her away for bureaucratic reasons. As an act……

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On a quiet evening in Laramie, Wyoming, what looks like a lone file cabinet sits near an abandoned barn. As the sun dips below the horizon, a commotion begins. Soon, there are paws scratching and teeth gnashing against aluminum and wood as fuzzy butts bump each other out of the way. Like desperate high school freshmen who’ve forgotten their locker codes, raccoons jostle and fiddle with various locks guarding cubbies full of delicious dog food and sardine treats. Other……

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While driving on US Highway 7 in Leicester, Vermont, you may do a double take. Standing in front of Pioneer Used Auto Sales stands the 19-foot concrete gorilla known as “Queen Connie.” Connie was built in 1987 by artist T.J. Neil to draw business to the car lot. This enormous primate was sculpted out of layers of concrete over steel rebar armature. She holds one arm aloft, balancing a VW Bug in the air. Her other arm is intentionally……

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When I grow pole beans, it’s rare they even make it to the kitchen. I wander by the planting box, in the morning to get the mail or at night coming back from a bar, and pause to pull green beans off the vine. I crunch them between my teeth, the snap and the juice, a true pleasure of summer, second only to plucking ripe cherry tomatoes straight from the vine and into my mouth. But when I grow……

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Once an imposing coastal fortress, it is now an overlooked relic of Croatia’s naval history. Fort Forno was a commanding and formidable fortress, though years of disuse have left it in a dilapidated state. The fort was built in 1904. It stood 25 meters above sea level and was built using stone blocks from local quarries and a reinforced concrete structure. The architecture allowed it to blend with the natural surroundings as it was built directly into the rock,……

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