March 10, 2021

The Donner Party’s Footsteps In December 2020, four ultra-athletes set out on a mission: to reach Johnson’s Ranch in Wheatland, California, the largest outpost between Fort Bridger in what is now Wyoming and Sutter’s Fort in Sacramento. It was a reprise of the Forlorn Hope expedition, who had broken off from the infamous 19th-century Donner Party, and who suffered for a week trying to reach food and shelter. The journey to empathetically recreate the journey was a long one. For seven years, members combed through historical accounts to determine the pioneers’ steps in order to retrace the 19th-century route. Not an easy task at all.  READ MORE → GASTRO OBSCURA Ancient Road Snacks The next time you embark on a road trip, consider bringing along qurt, a traditional dried dairy product that has sustained nomads across Central Asia for centuries. Qurt, also called qurut or kurt, derives from the word for “dry” in many Turkic languages and is made by straining fermented milk from a sheep, goat, cow, camel, or mare until it’s thick enough to be rolled into balls and dried in the sun. Centuries later, freeze-dried qurt nourished Soviet cosmonauts in space, and today it’s still hailed as a source of longevity, said to improve digestion, ward off osteoporosis, and support the health of children as well as pregnant and lactating women. READ MORE → MILAN, ITALY Torre Velasca Situated in the center of Milan, not far from the famous Duomo, is a less renowned but equally impressive architectural monster. The Torre Velasca was designed by renowned architectural group BBPR and constructed in 1958, and stands well of 300 feet (100 meters) tall. It has a peculiar, mushroom-like shape, designed to resemble a Medieval tower in homage of the city's medieval history. READ MORE → ATLAS OBSCURA EXPERIENCES Life Inside a Bat Cave Ah, the poor, misunderstood bat. We’re embarking on a journey to rehabilitate the bat’s image in tonight’s session of A Bat’s Life with Dr. Laura Kloepper, founder of the Kloepper Laboratory of Bioacoustics and Animal Behavior! Tonight, we’ll uncover the wonders of these creatures, specifically in regards to their life inside their bat caves. Grab a virtual flashlight and let’s embark on this journey together! GET TICKETS → The World’s Oldest Pet Cemetery In Egypt, a decade of excavations at the ancient Red Sea port of Berenice (Berenike) has revealed what some researchers are calling the world’s oldest pet cemetery. Nearly 600 animals, mostly cats, but also dogs and imported monkeys, have been found buried just beyond the walls of what was, almost 2,000 years ago, a bustling port. Many were laid to rest wearing metal or delicately beaded collars, their bodies covered in textiles or ceramics. But were they pets? And is this really the oldest known site where humans bid their furry friends farewell? READ MORE → PROVO, UTAH Castle Amphitheater The Castle Amphitheater, sometimes called the Provo Castle, is a unique historical building found on the grounds of the Utah State Hospital in Provo, Utah. The Castle Amphitheater was constructed between 1936-1937 and was one of around 230 public works constructed in Utah under New Deal programs. Fun fact: during the 1970s, the Castle Amphitheater was used as a “haunted castle” during Halloween! READ MORE → ATLAS OBSCURA TRIPS A Galician Seafood Pilgrimage The Romans once considered Galicia, the rugged coastal region of northwestern Spain, the end of the world. For most visitors, the region’s allure is the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela, the resting place and shrine of St. James, but it’s the seafood bounty of the Galician coast that has put it on the culinary map. Join us on a seafood pilgrimage as we delve deep into the world of barnacle hunters, oyster fisherman, lobster trap builders, razor clam-diggers, and net menders, along with the local chefs who are harnessing the incredible offerings of their coast to transform Galician cuisine into something new and exciting. LEARN MORE → Edinburgh’s Historical Secrets We’re pleased to spotlight a list that one of our brilliant contributors put together about Edinburgh! Meet Atlas Obscura user SEANETTA, who tops our leaderboards for places added in Scotland and visited in the capital of Edinburgh, and has compiled a list of spots that are concealed in plain sight. From a former fortress turned university to a small sculpture honoring a fiery act of protest, here are all the hidden wonders you may have missed. READ MORE → PARMA, ITALY Tomb of Niccolò Paganini Niccolò Paganini was a spectacular violinist—so talented that people believed he had made a deal with the devil. He died a sudden death at the age of 57, without a priest administering last rites, and because of the rumors of his association with the devil, the Catholic church refused Paganini’s body to be buried properly in his birthplace of Genoa. This is his final resting place, after his corpse was denied a proper Catholic burial for decades. READ MORE → SPONSORED BY FLORIDA'S SPORTS COAST Experience Florida’s Sports Coast It’s time to dive into adventure—quite literally. Safely #GetBacktoAdventure on Florida’s Sports Coast where abundant outdoor adventures ranging from angling adventures to paddleboarding along Florida’s majestic Gulf Coast await the curious traveler. LEARN MORE →