For any large toy collection you have seen, you have got nothing on Sherry Groom, founder of the Troll Hole Museum, a charming little place dedicated entirely to troll dolls and their many iterations. Calling Alliance, Ohio, home, the Troll Hole is a cool destination for toy lovers and anyone with a curious spirit who welcomes the weird and wacky.
Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve, the creator of the 1740 French fairy tale “Beauty and the Beast,” actually drew her inspiration from real historical events. In the 1500s, a man named Petrus Gonsalvus was born in Tenerife, Spain, with a rare genetic condition called “hypertrichosis,” or “werewolf syndrome.”
In the anatomical theater of the University of Lisbon’s Faculty of Medicine, high on a shelf, sits the preserved head of Portugal’s first serial killer. Diogo Alves was a nefarious criminal, reputed to have killed countless citizens of Lisbon in the 1800s. He would wait for farmers to pass by, rob them, and push them to their deaths off of a 200-foot-tall aqueduct.
No one is certain when the Singaporean bird-keeping tradition began, but most people will tell that it started in the 1950s with the British Armed Forces’ formation of the Singapore Cage Bird Society. As bird-keeping grew in popularity, travel guidebooks began to feature Singapore’s bird-singing areas, quickly turning them into tourist attractions that piqued the curiosity of visitors from around the globe.
Iconic British photographer Jimmy Nelson carries on his tradition of capturing brilliant images of the world’s many indigenous cultures through his latest book, “Homage To Humanity.” While his earlier work, “Before They Pass Away,” had a more cynical view of the fate of these cultures, his new book takes us on a journey through a new lens – one of celebration and honor.
About 110 miles (180 kilometers) south of Tokyo, Japan, in an area of the Pacific Ocean known as the “Devil’s Sea,” you will find a small island with a big story to tell. Miyake-jima is part of the volcanic Izu Islands, and host to Mount Oyama, an active volcano that sits at the very heart of the island. Because it emits poisonous sulfuric gas with very little warning, the 3,000 residents (as well as any visitors) are required to carry gas masks with them at all times.
Nicknamed “Mars on Earth,” Devon Island is found in Nunavut in Canada’s Arctic and is Earth’s largest uninhabited island. There is a good reason nobody lives here – this desolate place features a polar-desert climate and barren, treacherous terrain. The plateau is often veiled by fog. Deep canyons and a large crater made from a meteorite impact mark the landscape.
Chicago is not the first city to turn historic buildings into trendy apartments, but its dwellings may be among some of the most unique. The Cedar Street Companies’ FLATS® development line has been steadily transforming notable Chicago properties into modern apartment complexes while retaining the character of the historic buildings.
Anyone who grew up playing with LEGOs knows there is something quite satisfying about assembling the small colorful blocks to build a castle, car, spaceship, landmark or other magical creation. LEGO buffs also know what a treat it was to graduate from regular blocks to special building sets, which allowed them to construct near-exact replicas of their favorite characters and scenes.
Standing at the southernmost tip of Africa, it is easy to think there is nothing in the great blue beyond until Antarctica. However, halfway between these continents lies Bouvet Island, an uninhabited landmass so remote it has earned the unofficial nickname of “The Loneliest Place on Earth.”
