Author: Ms. R.

Along St. Charles Avenue in New Orleans, you’re sure to run into a few things that will stop you in your tracks. Amongst those hidden gems is a charming mosaic of oysters at the former site of The Pearl Restaurant and Oyster Bar. Installed in the 1940s, this sidewalk harkens back to glamorous days past. In fact, the sidewalk style of terrazzo has been famously used to create the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The sidewalk style reached its popularity peaks between……

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In the Plantage neighborhood of Amsterdam stands a museum that chronicles one of the darkest episodes of modern Dutch history; the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands and the heroic resistance that fought against it. The Dutch resistance to the Nazi occupation was largely a non-violent resistance movement that manifested in acts such as strikes, sabotage, the dissemination of clandestine anti-Nazi propaganda and literature, and protests. It was notable for the formation of the most successful organized networks in occupied……

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This article is adapted from the October 16, 2021, edition of Gastro Obscura’s Favorite Things newsletter. You can sign up here. Last week, the Gastro Obscura team assembled via Zoom for an ancient tradition. Each of us reclined on our couch, took aim with a large spoon full of liquid, and hurled it at a small target positioned atop a teetering tower. We were playing an adapted form of kottabos, a drinking game that dates back to ancient Greece…….

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If you are into abandoned places, history, old mines, geology, or rockhounding then this is an easily-accessed location for an interesting day trip from Seattle. Historically associated with the Twisp Mining District, which is now part of the Okanogan National Forest, Alder Mine contains the remnants of a mining operation that dates back to the late 19th century. Though the early history of this mine is not well documented, the property was acquired by the Alder Group Mining and Smelting……

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The creation of the universe has many theories and several interpretations. One of the more controversial theories—because it is unfounded in scientific fact—has been posed by the young-Earth Creationists, who believe that the earth and all its lifeforms appeared no more than 10,000 years ago. Jurassic Ark is an open-air demonstration of this theory. Founded by John Mackay, a former geologist and now the International Director of the Creation Research Centre, the aim of the Ark is to challenge……

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Also known as Swinside Stone Circle, or sometimes Swineshead, this monument lies beside Swinside Fells in the area of Black Combe. Sunkenkirk is a Neolithic site, one of more than 1,000 stone circles found across the British Isles and Brittany. Local folklore states that the stone circle was created at night, when the devil would pull down the stones of a church that was being constructed on the site during the day. This is the reason the site became……

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The Sensō-ji Temple complex is one of Tokyo‘s most popular tourist spots, visited by millions of people every year. While its main attraction is the big, brilliant red temple of Buddhist goddess Kannon and the traditional shopping street leading up to it, there are several lesser temples and a Japanese garden at the back that are well worth noting. One such temple is the Zenizuka Jizō-dō pavilion, dedicated to the popular earth-god Jizō and believed to be a source……

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The Vestry House Museum in the London neighborhood of Walthamstow houses a car constructed by Frederick Bremer in 1892. The Bremer Car, as it has come to be known, was the first car with an internal combustion engine built in the United Kingdom. Bremer worked from a workshop outside his house on Connaught Road in Walthamstow. At first, it was not clear how functional the car might be, since Bremer apparently kept it stored in the workshop after a……

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The Legato School was originally located at the intersection of Pender and Legato Roads, where it operated between the late 1870s until 1930. It was moved to Chain Bridge Road in 1971 as part of the Fairfax County Public School Centennial. The roof was moved separately from the rest of the building, and was reassembled at the new site with students from nearby Woodson High School assisting with the restoration. The museum has been furnished to mimic the look……

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