GASTRO OBSCURA  History of Alcohol Making alcohol is usually depicted as a rugged, manly pursuit. But for millennia, fermented drinks served more as food, rather than an indulgence. (Think of beer as liquid bread.) And instead of factories, it was often made in homes, by women. As the centuries marched on, brewers gained prominence and power, and women across the world were largely supplanted by their male counterparts. Today, women brewers, winemakers, and distillers are presented as pioneers. But really they represent a return to form. Here’s a brief history.  READ MORE → NEOLITHIC DISCOVERIES What’s Bigger Than Stonehenge? Ah, Stonehenge. For years, the stones have fascinated us with their mysteries. But near Stonehenge is another secret. It’s much, much, bigger—and is hidden underground. The newly found site, contemporaneous with Stonehenge, is a vast arc of pits, which archaeologists believe represents a significant development in their understanding of the inhabitants of early Britain. READ MORE → GASTRO OBSCURA COURSES For Good Measure: Recipe Writing Whether you’re preserving a generations-old recipe or documenting a new dish, putting words to the process of culinary creation is itself an art. Join culinary historian and author Sarah Lohman for this 3-part seminar and trace the history of the written recipe and explore how to revive or create a recipe of your own and prepare it for publication. ENROLL TODAY → KYOTO, JAPAN Ichimonjiya Wasuke Even among Kyoto's many historic shops, Ichimonjiya Wasuke, which has been in operation for more than a thousand years, stands out. Reportedly, the original founder started his business by serving roasted rice cakes, known as aburi-mochi, to those who visited the nearby Imamiya Shrine. At Ichiwa, as the confectionery is affectionately known, aburi-mochi is the only offering on the menu. Almost unchanged from the bygone past, the rice cakes are made by the matriarch of the 25th generation of the founder’s descendants. READ MORE → AT ONE END OF THE WORLD Polar Explorers Thirty-three-year-old Harpreet Chandi recently became the first woman of color to make the difficult solo trek to the South Pole. It took her 40 days to complete the 700-mile trek to the pole, skiing while pulling her tent, fuel, sleeping bag and freeze-dried rations on a 200-pound pulk, or cargo sled. The journey, Chandi told her Instagram followers, was “about so much more than me….” Instead, she hoped to “inspire people to push their boundaries, no matter their background, gender or colour of their skin.” READ MORE → ATLAS OBSCURA TRIPS Visit Fabled Iceland This Summer Between strange encounters with peculiar elves and supernatural creatures, Icelanders have their fair share of mythical tales. We’ll traverse the paths of ancient legends and discover the natural secrets of this astonishing land with a focus on the geologic, human, and mystical history of this land. This is a truly unforgettable experience for the intrepid traveler who is looking for an adventure that combines ancient history with breathtaking natural beauty. BOOK YOUR TRIP → MYTHS AND LEGENDS How to Appease Household Spirits From ancient Greece’s goddess of the hearth, Hestia, to the hobs of Northern England, household spirits have been around for centuries. But most such mythical creatures double as gods of fire and agents of chaos, so failing to tend to their needs can lead to missing items, broken dishes, and calamitous fortune. As you prepare your home for the upcoming holidays this year, here are some tips on how to keep particular household spirits in good standing. READ MORE → UNUSUAL COMBINATIONS Pub Owner, Undertaker Jasper McCarthy, the fifth-generation owner of the pub that carries his family’s name, pulled his first pint at the age of 10 and buried his first body three years later. For nearly two centuries, the McCarthy family has been serving Irish spirits at McCarthy’s Pub, Restaurant, and Undertakers. McCarthy’s is not the only pub in Ireland that serves beer alongside burials, but it is one of the last. This seemingly unusual commercial pairing used to be quite common, but has steadily declined since funeral homes were introduced in the late 1960s. READ MORE → THE ATLAS OBSCURA PODCAST The Office of Collecting and Design Meet filmmaker and artist Jessica Oreck, who has spent the last 30 years collecting odd and forgotten objects. Now, they’re all beautifully curated and on display in the Office of Collecting and Design in Las Vegas, which you can follow on Instagram. LISTEN ON OUR SITE →    LISTEN ON APPLE PODCASTS →    LISTEN ON SPOTIFY →    LISTEN ON STITCHER → A SLICE OF MILITARY ACADEMY HISTORY Pie Quandaries The food at West Point has, traditionally, not been very good. A Senate inquiry in 1860 concluded that the fare served to the corps of United States Army officers-in-training “was neither nutritious nor wholesome, neither sufficient nor nicely dressed.” For these early generations of cadets, at least there was the soothing balm of pie. But in more recent history, even pie has fallen victim to hazing; sometimes, young cadets were made to cut the dessert into a mathematically impossible number of exactly equal slices: seven, nine, or 11. READ MORE → OREGON, PORTUGAL, SPAIN, ITALY Strawberry Tree Fruit This is Arbutus unedo, a tree that is native to the Mediterranean, but is also a popular ornamental plant throughout the United States’ Northwest. These lychee-looking balls typically fall to rot in the yards of homeowners who are often unaware that they are not only delicious in jams and liqueurs, but have served as powerful symbols in funeral rites and politics. READ MORE → SPONSORED BY TRAVEL PORTLAND Native American Art Center This 8,000 square foot exhibit features over 3,500 pieces representing over 200 distinct indigenous groups, dating from prehistory to the modern-day. The museum also features artwork from living indigenous artists, making it one of the first permanent exhibits to establish indigenous material as art, and offering an opportunity for ancestral artistic instincts to be sustained by marginalized people and transposed onto modern media. LEARN MORE →