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This book is so rich with information, research, and photographs. It brings new locations, objects, and monuments to light in a unique way with showcasing the strange and outstanding corners of the world that will bring out numerous emotions from disbelief to wonder. It is an entertaining travel book that makes me want to reach out of my comfort zone and begin exploring the world, but it is also filled with history on places and people that I would have not otherwise learned, which makes it all the more captivating. Foer's work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Slate, and The Nation. In 2007, the quarterly art & culture journal Cabinet began publishing Foer's column "A Minor History Of." The column "examines an overlooked cultural phenomenon using a timeline." Discover Local Events: Keep an eye on community calendars and local guides to find unique events happening in your area. Attend festivals, art exhibitions, live performances, and lectures that showcase niche interests. Participating in these events will expose you to new ideas, vibrant cultures, and diverse communities. Drogin’s book had dozens of such curses in it, and he had collected at least a dozen more to include in the second edition, which was never published. Inside his copy of the book, he still has a baggie of antique file cards, full of book curses.
You'll be occupied for hours, discovering Fingal's Cave in Scotland, a sea cave with walls perfectly hexagonal columns, or the Tree Cathedral in Italy, a piece of living architecture that continues to grow. There are also morbid findings, like did you know that the Overtoun Bridge, located in Dumbarton, West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, is known as the dog suicide bridge? Since the 1960s, around 50 dogs have perished after leaping to their deaths from the same spot on the bridge. Embracing curiosity and seeking out the unusual and offbeat can lead to unexpected and enriching experiences.
Customer reviews
The funny thing is, though my parents were sure to take me to several tourist destinations while we were abroad, I usually didn't seek out such places myself. This was especially true in Italy, where my friends and I would go explore the extensive tunnel systems under the city of Brindisi, and visit beach-side World War II bunkers where we would look for (and find) old shell casing from a time when our grandfathers might have been storming the beach. This was also true when I lived in England, where our favorite thing to do was to break into an old, supposedly haunted 12th-century priory, complete with trap doors in the floors and passageways hidden within the walls. They are real. I found them and walked through them myself. But I never did get to the Roman Colosseum, nor did I ever visit the Tower of London. Maybe I had an aversion to doing the touristy things because I LIVED there. Yes, the stay was temporary, no more than three years, but these places were "home" for me. So I didn't feel like a tourist. I'd much rather go watch the bums roll each other on Carnaby Street (affectionately known as "Cannabis Street" to us teenagers and, which has become way more commercialized now than when I was a kid hanging out there in the mid-'80s) than step foot in Madame Tussauds (I even had to cheat to see how to spell that). I've had hookers proposition me on Leicester Square, watched hungry bands busk on the tubes, and, yes, watched bums roll each other in alleyways. This was my idea of "touristing". We spent five years planning, researching, and writing this book, and we can’t wait for you to read it. It contains ourmost treasuredwonders, from Galileo’s middle finger to everyone’s favorite giant flaming hole in the Turkmenistan desert. There arenew maps and illustrations, gorgeous photos, and useful information oneverything from preventing premature burial to not getting killed by one of Australia’s many deadly animals.
Atlas Obscura is a joyful antidote to the creeping suspicion that travel these days is little more than a homogenized corporate shopping opportunity. Here are hundreds of surprising, perplexing, mind-blowing, inspiring reasons to travel a day longer and farther off the path. . . . Bestest travel guide ever.” My favorite travel guide! Never start a trip without knowing where a haunted hotel or a mouth of hell is!” Cultivate a Sense of Wonder: Foster an awareness of the magic and mystery present in everyday experiences. Pay attention to the little things, like the intricate patterns on a butterfly's wings or the way sunlight filters through leaves. Actively seek out unique experiences that ignite a sense of wonder within you. In London- Highgate cemetary (apparently on friday the 13th of March,1970. Two "magicians" and a mob overpowered the Police lines and broke into Highgate to "kill vampires")Atlas Obscura is a joyful antidote to the creeping suspicion that travel these days is little more than a homogenized corporate shopping opportunity. Here are hundreds of surprising, perplexing, mind-blowing, inspiring reasons to travel a day longer and farther off the path. . . . Bestest travel guide ever.” A few days ago I had read a cool book on strange places to visit in the world. It was an interesting book and gave me some cool ideas. If I had a complaint it was the book was not that big and highlighted 51 places to visit. The book continues to take readers on a whirlwind exploration of extraordinary places and hidden wonders that span the globe. From the towering sand dunes of Namibia's Skeleton Coast to the breathtaking glowworm caves of New Zealand, Atlas Obscura introduces readers to a world of awe-inspiring discoveries. The magnificent architectural marvels of Petra in Jordan, the whimsical Fairy Circles in Namibia, and the ethereal beauty of the Waitomo Glowworm Caves in New Zealand are just a few of the countless examples that invite readers to step off the beaten path and embrace the wonders that lie beyond the familiar.
Throughout the book, Atlas Obscura presents countless examples of unusual and offbeat places. From secret gardens hidden in the heart of bustling cities to abandoned amusement parks reclaimed by nature, each location offers a glimpse into a world that is both captivating and unconventional. Readers are invited to explore the wonders of places like the Bone Church in Kutná Hora, Czech Republic, where the interior is adorned with human bones, or the remote Socotra Island in Yemen, home to bizarre and otherworldly plant species found nowhere else on Earth. Writers Joshua Foer, Dylan Thuras, and Ellen Morton have put together a sumptuous compendium of some of Obscura's more photogenic oddities. There are tons of fabulous photographs and illustrations throughout and while hardcore weird history buffs might prefer it if descriptions were a tad more in depth the authors smart, gently quippy analysis of each entry is certainly enough to whet the appetite and send fans scurrying to do research of their own. But these, I freely admit, are just a few scattered examples—and they're among the easiest for U.S. residents like me to visit, to boot. Many of the landmarks in Atlas Obscura are significantly less accessible—even if you're a wealthy and seasoned world traveler, even if you happen to be in the same country (or even on the same continent) they're in, or near. The presence of an entry in the Atlas must not be read as encouragement, a promise of availability, or any guarantee of safety. Geography, politics, radiation, wild beasts, structural issues... the barriers are as diverse as the entries themselves—which is exactly why (or at least one big reason why) this collection is such a treasure. What a strange and wonderful book! It is as curious and surprising as Saddam Hussein’s very own Blood Qur’an—written in his own blood—which I would never have known about had I not read the amazing Atlas Obscura.” For those who have always yearned to travel, experience new cultures, and discover the untold stories of our world, Atlas Obscura by Joshua Foer is the perfect guide. This extraordinary book stimulates the imagination and encourages readers to explore the hidden gems that lie beneath the surface, providing a glimpse into the rich tapestry of human creativity and the wonders of nature.The world is full of wonderful and magnificent things, from spectacular beaches, to amazing vistas, beautiful creatures and breath-taking waterfalls. But look a little harder and you can find a whole lot of other remarkable, wonderful and weird thing to amuse and entertain. If you are looking for those sorts of things, then this is the book for you. Beholding hundreds of off-the-beaten-path gems, this book is a treasure chest of wanderlust where readers are transported to places they’re certain to have never encountered.” — Marie Claire Inspired by our growing Atlas of almost 15,000 unique places around the world, the kids’ book includes places such as Blood Falls in Antarctica, the Crystal Caves in Naica, Mexico, and the Root Bridges of Cherrapunji, India. Another fascinating example highlighted by the book is the Museum of Jurassic Technology in Los Angeles. This peculiar museum is like no other, dedicated to showcasing a collection of strange and captivating artifacts that blur the line between fact and fiction. Visitors to the museum are greeted with exhibits such as the Micromosaics of Harold Napoleon, which features intricate mosaics made from the tiny wings of butterflies. The Olfactory Archive is another exhibit that captures the imagination, exploring the complexities and nuances of human scent. The Museum of Jurassic Technology stands as a testament to the hidden wonders that can be found even in our everyday surroundings, encouraging readers to see the beauty and fascination that surrounds them. Not to mention the Great Stalacpipe Organ in Virginia, Turkmenistan’s 45-year hole of fire called the Door to Hell, hanging coffins suspended off a cliff face in the Philippines, eccentric bone museums in Italy, or a weather-forecasting invention that was powered by leeches, still on display in Devon, England.
My favorite travel guide! Never start a trip without knowing where a haunted hotel or a mouth of hell is!” A travel guide for the most adventurous of tourists . . . a wonderful browse [for] armchair travelers who enjoyed Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York and Frank Warren’s PostSecret.” —Library Journal Seek Out Natural Wonders: Take time to explore the natural phenomena around you. Plan hikes, nature walks, or camping trips in local parks, forests, or nature reserves. Seek out geological wonders like caves, waterfalls, or canyons. Marvel at the beauty of nature and its ability to create breathtaking landscapes. A travel guide for the most adventurous of tourists . . . a wonderful browse [for] armchair travelers who enjoyed Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York and Frank Warren’s PostSecret.” —Library Journal
Is there anything quite like Atlas Obscura? And now it’s a book! And having read several cool-blog-got-a-book-deal books, this is decidedly in the better half of that genre, which tends to be shit, because blogs and books are very different media, and they often can’t be translated from one to the other. The Atlas made the jump, which is nice, because more people will discover it. This feeling obviously stayed with me, and it’s at the heart of Atlas Obscura. So it is a great joy, alongside my incredible co-author Rosemary Mosco and our talented illustrator Joy Ang, to announce the official release of the Atlas Obscura Explorer’s Guide for the World’s Most Adventurous Kid. It’s a book for any young person who loves adventure, exploring, or just daydreaming about the world and wondering, what’s out there?
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