A Race Against Time In Maryland, archaeologists are racing rising waters to find traces of the past. Work is underway in a frantic search for the home of Ben Ross, father of Harriet Tubman, one of the busiest conductors of the Underground Railroad. Experts have been looking for this site for at least 20 years, and even as water levels continue to rise, threatening the search, experts are hopeful that finding Ross’s cabin could enrich the stories told about Tubman’s life and the place she came from.  READ MORE →

GASTRO OBSCURA Flaming Christmas Cocktail Cauldrons It’s easy to be intimidated by feuerzangenbowle, whose very name can be daunting to non-German speakers. Pronounced “foyer-zangen-bowl-uh”, the pyrotechnic punch could be considered mulled wine’s metal cousin. To make it, you actually begin with a bowl of mulled wine (gluhwein, in German), then soak a large cone of sugar in rum, suspend it above the bowl, and set it alight. Up your Christmas cocktail game with this recipe. READ MORE →

ALAMOGORDO, NEW MEXICO Alamogordo Landfill The film E.T. is an enduring work of beloved cinema, but unfortunately, the Atari video game it inspired has earned a place in history as one of the worst (if not THE worst) video games of all time. While there is some speculation as to whether the story is true, the Alamogordo Landfill is said to hold millions of unopened copies of E.T. the Extra Terrestrial the Video Game, which an embarrassed Atari Company was desperately trying to get rid of. READ MORE →

ATLAS OBSCURA COURSES Cartooning Character With Zawadi Noël Cartooning can serve as a vehicle to remember—to document, honor, and even reimagine the people and stories that have shaped us. In this six-session workshop starting in January, you’ll learn how to create a nuanced, well-researched, representative character influenced by a person who has impacted you and create an illustrated micro-biography. Participants need not be professional artists; this course will cover some technical drawing instruction, touch on narrative development, and offer the support of an open-minded community of visual storytellers. ENROLL NOW →

GASTRO OBSCURA Seawater in Wine For more than two decades, Hervé Durand has been offering visitors the opportunity to travel back in time some 2,000 years. Not by operating a time machine. Instead, he hands out glasses of wine, which is made to taste like Roman times, made according to the historical writings of authors such as Pliny the Elder and Lucius Moderatus Columella, a prominent authority on agriculture in the Roman Empire. While Durand uses modern techniques to make Syrah and other popular varieties, he also mixes in ingredients popular among the Greeks and then the Romans, including seawater, which gives the wine a curious and unexpected salinity.  READ MORE →

FROM THE ARCHIVES Sad Christmas Trees Any decades-old tree has probably been through a lot: It has likely withstood droughts, deluges, and a pest or two. In 2019, the nonagenarian Norway spruce in London’s Trafalgar Square faced yet another threat: Being bullied on Twitter for looking less than cheerful. It’s not the only one, either; New York City’s Rockefeller Center tree sometimes doesn’t look so hot, and in 2017, Rome’s 72-footer earned the unfortunate nickname Spelacchio, which the New York Times translated as “mangy.” There’s a simple explanation for why these trees look so terrible: Many big-city centerpieces are wild-grown Norway spruce, which “is probably the single worst species” you could choose. READ MORE →

SLANÝ, CZECHIA 'Hvězdicová Kotelna' This building has garnered notoriety for its unusual shape. Constructed by architects Vratislav Růžička and Vlastibor Klimeš between 1970 and 1979, the structure is home to an oil and gas heating plant. Locals have dubbed the building “Hvězdicová kotelna” because of its starfish shape. READ MORE →

KINVER, ENGLAND Holy Austin Rock Houses These houses built into the sandstone rock at Kinver were the last occupied troglodyte dwellings in England. The tiered homes were occupied for more than 200 years, and may have served as the inspiration for Tolkien’s Hobbit holes. READ MORE →

SPONSORED BY CHOOSE CHICAGO Voted the U.S.'s Best Big City Countless awe-inspiring sights and unforgettable experiences. Only 1 Chicago. See why Chicago has once again been voted the Best Big City in the U.S. by Condé Nast Traveler readers! LEARN MORE →