👀 A compendium of the obscure
#36 | The most storied atlas in the world
Ever visited a historical attraction? Maybe the ruins of a fort somewhere? Perhaps an excavation of a buried civilisation? And while there, did you wonder about the stories the ruins could tell? The legends and history that time forgot?
I’m always thinking about offbeat history. Who was the first person who decided to milk a cow and drink? Which genius thought to grind rice and dal with water into a batter and spread it on a hot griddle? While my ruminations are primarily about the origins of various foods, I often think about places.
I used to wish I had unlimited resources and access to the best, most curious researchers and writers from around the world. I’d have made a site that catalogues all the obscurities that make our world an interesting place.
But then about 5 years ago, I realised I didn’t need to build that site – because I discovered my favourite destination on the internet: Atlas Obscura.
Whether it is a stone wall in the UK, candy in Canada, or a temple in India, Atlas Obscura takes you on a ride with facts, factoids, trivia and all the history you can absorb. A few years ago, Atlas Obscura even started physical trips to all the wonderful places they write about.
So if you’ve ever wanted to know what happened to the person who created McD’s, it seems he ate too many burgers. He must have. Or you might want to know why cops are defacing walls in London. You can use the atlas to find a place you may want to learn all about. Or my favourite tool – the random place generator.
And if what you find inspires you to go on a culinary adventure in Vietnam, take me along, please?
Happy exploring.