It’s been said that procrastinators are simply optimistic. We have faith that timing will work out, never mind that we set our clocks to be 10 minutes fast and see train schedules more like guidelines. So in the spirit of goodwill toward all perpetually late people, the editors at Atlas Obscura believe in you to fulfill your gift-giving promises … even...

Gales of wind gust in and out like the breath of an enormous beast as the storm begins on Quirpon Island, just off Newfoundland's northernmost tip. The rain comes in sheets, soaking the isle’s emerald mesas and pebbling the icebergs that float offshore. Other than the lonely lighthouse warning sailors from the jagged fangs off the island, Quirpon...

In 1950, Icelandic researcher Jón Eyþórsson came across a gathering of fuzzy green puff balls, the size of small gerbils, scattered across Hrútárjökull Glacier in the southeast of the country. Curiously, the mossy balls weren’t attached to the ground, and many were green on all sides, indicating they must slowly turn so that the entire exterior sees...

When you visit Lewes, Delaware, you’ll make it about four seconds before learning from a sign or local that the town is the first town in the first state in the United States.  With historical ties like that, it’s only right that the Lewes Historical Society celebrates in style. On the first Friday of each month, Rabbit’s Ferry House, on the LHS’s...

Located at the edge of Beacon Hill and directly across from Boston Common, the George Parkman looks almost identical to many other buildings in the area. There isn't even a plaque indicating its historical association, but this unassuming home has a dark history. It once belonged to the victim in one of the most sensationalized murder trials of the...

One of the most surprising statues in Madrid is this 2001 statue of the street sweeper in action. This is one of those statues that one could easily pass by and ignore due to its realism. Going up from Puerta del Sol in the direction of Lavapiés, visitors will always meet the same character halfway: the humble street sweeper from the Plaza de Jacinto...