Weird Competitions Around the World

It is well known the fact that we all have a sense of competition which is usually encouraged since our childhood. We play different games and find out that there are just two main possibilities: winning or losing. However, throughout time, our crave for challenge made us discover numerous hilarious, rather weird competitions.

The Redneck Games

Every year, in July, in East Dublin, Georgia there is a weird and controversial competition called the Redneck Games. The cigarette flip, bobbing for pig's trotters, seed spitting, toilet seat throwing, mud pit belly flop, big-hair contest, armpit serenade, bug zapping by spitball, and hubcap hurling are the main games in the competition. Still, the moment that best describes the event is the mud pit belly flop. Pretty exciting, no?

World Toe Wrestling Championship

Next time you go to the gym, remember to work out those toes! Why? Because maybe you have a change of winning the World Toe Wrestling Championships. Toe wrestling became quite popular lately, especially in the UK, and it seems that its rules are similar to those of arm wrestling. Alan "Nasty" Nash is the current world champion.

Rock Paper Scissors Championships

Prepare your strategies and get ready to put all your rock-paper-scissors skills to the test. In 2002, the World Rock Paper Scissors Society came up with a set of rules for international play and since then numerous championships managed to attract competitors around the world. In 2009, in Ottawa, Canada it was held the largest recorded rock-paper-scissors tournament, having approximately 1150 participants.

Wife Carrying World Championship

Most men say that once you get married you feel like all burdens of the world are on your shoulders. Well, metaphorically speaking. Now, in order to make men actually experience the feeling, people in Sonkajärvi, Finland hold, every July, the Wife Carrying World Championships. The rules are simple. The wife is draped upside-down over the husband’s shoulders and the husband who carries his wife fastest across an obstacle track wins. Still, the prize is the best part: his wife’s weight in beer.

World Gurning Championship

This hilarious competition is based on an English tradition. The World Gurning Championship takes place every year at the same crab fair in Egremont, Cumbria. What is a 'gurn'? A 'gurn' is a distorted facial expression and it typically involves covering the upper lip with the lower lip. Contestants frame their faces through a horse collar or 'braffin' and show their most stunning moves. Yet, no one seems to be more expressive than toothless competitors.

Air Guitar World Championships

Nothing sounds better than an invisible guitar. According to the rules, every competitor must play air guitar on stage in two rounds, each lasting for 1 minute. Using the same 6.0 score system as in figure skating, judges evaluate the participants' technical merit, stage presence and airness. In 2010, Sylvain "Gunther Love" Quimene from France received the gold medal at the Air Guitar World Championships.

World Nettle Eating Championships

With participants coming from all over the world, the World Nettle Eating Championship is one weird competition, held in Dorset, Britain. You have one hour and as many nettles as your stomach and mouth can bare. Well, the best part is that you are allowed to drink some beer while enjoying the huge bunches of stinging nettles.

Cheese Rolling

The Cooper's Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake is an unusual event held on the Spring Bank Holiday at Cooper's Hill, near Gloucester in the Cotswolds region of England. The rules and the game itself are the easiest ever. A round of Double Gloucester cheese is rolled from the top of the hill. Competitors practically throw themselves down the hill after it and the first, fastest person who gets the bottom of the hill wins the cheese.

Curious Facts about Chocolate

The long history of this heavenly sweet treat called 'chocolate' includes numerous interesting things. The delicious origins of the cacao tree can be traced over 2,000 years ago in the tropical rainforests from South America, while throughout time different studies have revealed some curious facts about chocolate. By the way, did you know that scientific studies have proven that chocolate is not addictive?

We all know how chocolate tastes like, but what does the word 'chocolate' mean? It seems that the word comes from the Aztec "Xocolatl", which means bitter water. The first people who discovered cocoa were the Maya, who fermented, roasted, and ground the seeds into a paste, then mixed it with water, chili peppers, an different other ingredients. Aztecs traded with Maya for cacao and they often required that citizens and conquered peoples pay their tribute in cacao seeds, which was considered as a form of Aztec money.

When enjoying a sweet chocolate bar we never take the time to think how it is made. Well, when something is as delicious as this, it's rather impossible to imagine an entire complicated process. In fact, it takes approximately 400 cacao beans to make one pound of chocolate, while cocoa beans go through an eight step process to become a delightful treat. Chocolate is made so it melts in your mouth, as cocoa butter has a melting point that is just below the average human body temperature.

Europeans first discovered chocolate in 1519 when Moctezuma, the last ruler of the Aztecs, gave Cortés ‘chocolatl’, his favorite drink. Hernan Cortés was a Spanish conquistador sent on an expedition to colonise Mexico in 1517. When he returned to Spain in 1528 he brought cocoa beans and equipment for making the drink. Next, it took nearly a century for news of cocoa and chocolate to spread across Europe.

It is estimated that the first solid chocolate dates back to Mexico sometime in the 1700's. Still, the world's first solid chocolate bar was born in the 1840s when two British companies, Cadbury, and Fry and Sons began to make edible chocolate. In fact, in 1847, Fry & Sons of Bristol, England mixed sugar with cocoa powder and cocoa butter to produce the first solid chocolate bar.

The aphrodisiac qualities of chocolate have been discovered by the French people at the Royal Court. It is said that Madame de Pompadour, Louis XIV's favorite, used to drink one hot chocolate a day to cure her frigidity. Besides, famous Casanova used to drink chocolate and we all know he was really lucky in his love life.

Chocolate contains a chemical known as phenylethylamine, which is also produced by the brain when we fall in love. Phenylethylamine, in addition to the sugar, fat and caffeine found in chocolate release serotonin and endorphins, two known chemicals that make us feel happy.

Since love and chocolate are strongly related through incredible chemical reactions, someone had to come up with the idea of heart-shaped boxes of chocolate. This person was Richard Cadbury who first made this type of boxes in 1861. Then, seven years later, John Cadbury began mass producing them. Nowadays, there are various types heart-shaped boxes to choose from.

Besides its incredible taste, chocolate is also very healthy. It seems that it helps fight depression, high blood pressure, tumors and pre-menstrual syndromes. Chocolate contains antioxidants that are thought to lower the risk of heart diseases. A Harvard study says that people who eat chocolate live a year longer than people who don't.

What about energy? Did you know that one chocolate chip gives the average adult enough energy to walk about 150 feet? Or, that a bar of dark chocolate contains about 10-15 grams of sugar while a glass of orange juice contains about 22 grams of sugar? Moreover, one ounce of baking chocolate or cocoa contains 10% of the daily recommended intake of iron.

Weird Facts about Sleepwalking

We all know that sleep plays a major role in our lives, affecting both our mental and physical health. Sleep helps us conserve and recover energy every day. Still, what happens while asleep? Our body relaxes, some of us have sweet or bizarre dreams, while others get up and start wandering around. These people, known as sleepwalkers, experience somnabulism, also called sleepwalking.

Somnabulism is a disorder that makes people walk while sleeping. And sometimes this not means just walking. There are numerous, captivating stories of sleepwalkers who started eating, cleaning or even woke up in a different or unusual place. According to the studies made, 1 to 15% of the population is predisposed to sleepwalking. But, what is in fact sleepwalking and what does it imply?

Sleepwalking is a form of parasomnia or sleep disorder that occurs during the deep stages of sleep. There are five phases of sleep, meaning stages 1, 2, 3, 4, and REM (rapid eye movement) sleep, but we spend almost 50% of our total sleep time in stage 2 sleep, 20% in REM , and the rest in the other stages. The first stage is the lightest, while during the second one, our eye movements stop and our brain waves are slower.

It is said that people who sleepwalk do so during the next two stages, 3 and 4 (non-REM sleep), which are called deep sleep, when brain waves begin to appear. During the latest stage there is no eye movement or muscle activity. The average of a sleepwalking episode is between 5 to 15 minutes, yet it may last as long as half an hour or even more, but also just a few seconds. If they are not disturbed, sleepwalkers will go back to sleep.

The explanation behind sleepwalking says that the 'sleep center' in the brain, controlling the sleeping and the waking of the body, blocks of a part of the brain and certain nerves while sleeping. If generally, the sleep center and the body are connected, there are times when they can separate. And while the brain goes to sleep, the body remains awake.

Still, when it comes to the specific ways and all the processes implied, science seems to fail. Our bodies function according to a 24-hour cycle called circadian rhythms ((circadian is Latin for "around a day"), which represent regular mental and physical changes throughout a day, while the activity of brain waves and hormones fluctuate due to the influence of external factors, such as light, but also stimulated by intern mechanisms. Some researchers believe that all the small variations in this cycle might be related to sleepwalking.

Sleepwalking is usually harmless since the sleepwalker makes simple, routine tasks. However, there are cases when the sleepwalker can harm himself or people around him. Moreover, if a person experiences frequent sleepwalking episodes, this can lead to health problems. Incredible cases of sleepwalkers leaving their houses and doing unusual things that normally they wouldn't do such as rapes and even murders have been recorded.

Studies show that sleepwalking is most common in children and is affecting more males than females. As for the main causes, it has been shown that sleepwalking can be hereditary, especially if a first degree relative has had a history of sleepwalking. Besides, it seems that somnambulism occurs more frequently in identical twins. There are other suspected causes such as sleep apnea, head trauma, arrhythmia, sleep deprivation, fever, asthma during the nighttime, alcohol, stress and certain medications.

Although asleep, a sleepwalker’s eyes are usually wide open and he sometimes has a blank look on the face. Even though it is said that waking a sleepwalker might be dangerous, as this might cause him a heart attack, brain damage, or shock, this seems to be just a myth. It is thought that the best thing to do is to guide them back to bed in their sleep. When fully awake, sleepwalker will seldom remember the details of the episode.

Incredible sleepwalking stories

Weird Traffic Laws Around the World

If you think that driving in reverse being considered as illegal is odd, wait to see these next weird traffic laws around the world. Therefore, if you are a woman, remember that in California it's against the law to wear a housecoat while driving or that driving shirtless in Thailand can result into a nice fine.

It is said that human imagination is essential for any mental activity that requires a visualization within the mind and that all humans have this power under various forms and strengths. However, there are some people who posses too much. For example, some of those who gave these bizarre traffic laws.

Weird Valentine's Day Gifts

With Valentine's Day approaching, we are all eagerly waiting for the perfect gift. However, since perfection doesn't exist, a common, simple gift would be enough. For those of you who want something more “special”, there is a riot of unusual Valentine's Day gifts available on the market. Take a look and draw your inspiration!

“50 Boyfriends Worse than Yours” by Justin Racz
If you feel that your girlfriend doesn't appreciate everything you do for her, buy her this book. “50 Boyfriends Worse than Yours” by Justin Racz will undoubtedly make her realize how lucky she is for having you in her life. Or, she will want to be single again.

Cross Section Human Heart Model
Not quite sure if this is a Valentine's Day gift or a Halloween accessory. Still, if you want to prove your endless love to your significant other, don't hesitate to give her/him your heart. Well, a human heart model with a cross-section view. Even though it comes with an activity guide, we are not 100% sure we can learn how a boy's heart really works.

The girlfriend/boyfriend pillow
One extremely innovative gift, the arm-shaped pillow is comfortable, providing a warm sleeping support and it is awesome for snuggling. It comes in the girlfriend and boyfriend version and in a variety of different colors. Women have more options as they can choose a soft or muscular chest.

“Bittersweet” and “Ignorance is Bliss” Scales
These bathroom scales represent a funny, hilarious gift, rather than an unusual one. The only unusual thing would be the numbers displayed when you weigh. There are two versions, “Bittersweet” and “Ignorance is Bliss.” However, instead of numbers, “Bittersweet” features positive affirmations such as “Simply Ravishing” and "I'm a perfect ten,” while “Ignorance is Bliss” does away with numbers altogether.

2-Carat Cup
Want to propose but you have no idea how? Valentine's Day is a great opportunity for you to make the big step. But, instead of the traditional engagement ring, try the 2-Carat Cup, a mug with a golden ring-shaped handle. The Swarovski crystal rings comes in silver or gold and in a beautiful velour-lined jewelry box.

Ring to make love bell
This special bell can act just like a magic wand. It even comes with instructions. For example, you should ring one time if you are “Ready now but if X Files is on you may have to wait...”, or 3 times when you are really desperate. We don't want to imagine what four rings stand for! Therefore, next time you hear the bell ringing, wait and count. Still, how many times should we ring for room service?

Head Massager
This Valentine's Day gift might prove to be not just a great way to relax by stimulating pressure points, but a very useful tool also. For example, it is perfect when you want to watch the football game and please your girlfriend or your favorite soap opera and give a good massage to your boyfriend.

'Control-Your-Man' and 'Control-Your-Woman' Talking Remote
Make your relationship much easier and fun with this innovative remote controllers. If you want to become commander-in-chief of your partner's thoughts and actions, you have a helpful friend, the 'Control-Your-Man' and 'Control-Your-Woman' Talking Remote. By pushing just one button you can adjust and control everything. Each remote delivers 18 hilarious verbal one-offs and accompanying sound effects sure to put your significant other on the right track.

Curious Facts about Human Senses

It is said that the real world and the one we perceive are two different worlds, while all the things we see, hear and feel are just experiences in our mind. We all know the five traditional senses, which are sight, smell, taste, touch, and hearing. Every single one of these five senses has organs with cells that are linked to the nervous system. Moreover, these cells have receptors for certain stimuli. Take a look to these curious fact about human senses.

When philosopher Berkeley said that there is nothing else outside our perceptions, a question was posed in “The Chautauquan” magazine: “If a tree were to fall on an island where there were no human beings would there be any sound?” Well, the answer was “No”, since “sound is the sensation excited in the ear when the air or other medium is set in motion.” However, “Scientific Magazine”, asked the question one year later, but changing it a bit: “If a tree were to fall on an uninhabited island, would there be any sound?” Then, they came with a more technical answer saying that “sound is vibration, transmitted to our senses through the mechanism of the ear, and recognized as sound only at our nerve centers. The falling of the tree or any other disturbance will produce vibration of the air. If there be no ears to hear, there will be no sound.” Therefore, one can say that one cannot speak about sound in the physical reality, but more of an experience in the mind of the one who perceives it.

Impressive Museums in the World

Whenever visiting a new city we always want to see the most incredible and unique things that perfectly characterize and reflect that specific place. A museum can represent that one particular destination where you can discover interesting facts. Take a look to some of the most impressive museums in the world and get ready to enter into a whole different realm.

Cancun Underwater Museum
This is not just a simple museum, but it is more like a special place where two apparently different worlds, art and underwater, meet in an extremely impressive way giving birth to a breathtaking view. Cancun Underwater Museum is the largest of this type in the world consisting of more than 400 permanent life-size sculptures, with every gallery having it’s own meaning, such as “The Dream Collector”, “Man on Fire” and “The Silent Evolution”. The project is signed by Jaime Gonzalez Cano of The National Marine Park, Roberto Diaz of The Cancun Nautical Association and Jason Decaires Taylor. This amazing museum features sculptures made from pH neutral clay meant to promote the growth of coral reef and marine life with the total installation occupying an area of over 150sq meters and weighing over 120 tons has over 750,000 visitors each year.

The Guggenheim Museum
The Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain is a museum of modern and contemporary art. Opened to the public in 1997, this impressive museum built alongside Nervion River is one of those stunning creations that can leave one speechless being called world's most stunning buildings built in the style of Deconstructivism. Designed by Canadian-American architect Frank Gehry, the Guggenheim Museum hosts different thematic exhibitions making Bilbao an international tourism destination.

The Niterói Contemporary Art Museum
The Niterói Contemporary Art Museum (Museu de Arte Contemporânea - MAC) in Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, was designed by Oscar Niemeyer and it has 16 meters high, while its cupola has a diameter of 50 meters with three floors. Sitting atop a cliff, offering an amazing view, the museum projects itself over “Boa Viagem” (“Bon Voyage,” “Good Journey”), a 817-square meter reflecting pool that surrounds the cylindrical base just “like a flower,” how Niemeyer called it.

Centre Pompidou-Metz
This is another of those buildings whose architecture is more than beautiful and words seem useless in front of such remarkable creations. Situated in Metz, Lorraine, France, Centre Pompidou Metz is a branch of the Paris Museum designed by architects Shigeru Ban and Jean de Gastines. This impressive museum is characterized by a modular structure with a hexagonal roof. The Centre Pompidou-Metz hosts important exhibitions and is a place where you can live unique experiences due to the multidisciplinary programming.

Royal Ontario Museum
The Royal Ontario Museum is among the world’s most remarkable museums of natural history, and of world cultures. The original building of the museum was opened to the public on March 19, 1914. However, in 2007, the Lee-Chin Crystal was linked through bridges to the already existing building. The new attached part is made of five self-supporting prismatic structures with 25% glass and 75% extruded-brushed, aluminum-cladding strips in silver. The Crystal was designed by Daniel Libeskind.

The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum is an internationally popular museum situated in New York City. It was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright becoming one of the most important architectural icons of the 20th century. The main idea behind the design of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum is that of a spiraling gallery space. It hosts different special exhibitions throughout the year being a place totally devoted to art. Its structure in fact can be considered as a beautiful sculpture rather than a simple building.

Amazing Nature Photos

Landscapes, people and animals are main characters of some of the most amazing nature photos. Words seem to be useless in front of such stunning beauty, as these images speak for themselves, reflecting a pure, yet fierce world where there are no guiding rules.

Nature is incredible due to its unbelievable power of revealing some of the most beautiful live shows one has ever seen. Even the smallest and insignificant element can become the main character, a blade, a straw, a small ant, everything might tell us a very inspirational story. We just have to open our souls and listen. The earth, the sky and every single creature can reveal its deepest secrets mirrored into an amazing photo.

Breathtaking landscapes are wonderfully painted in special colors making each and every single one of them unique. Enjoy life to the fullest, take a deep breath as the world opens in front of you and that one moment is singular and you'll never have the chance to see it again. Well, unless you are constantly carrying a camera with you and then share your happiness with the others.

Good and evil, beautiful and ugly, fire and ice. There will always be this constant battle against opposite forces that cannot live one without the other. When nature unleashes its most terrifying powers, there's no reason to be frightened. Furious waters, melting snow, or breathtaking icebergs have something beautiful and amazing in them. However, there is nothing more incredible than a lightning meeting a playful, colorful rainbow.

Animals will always represent a main point of interest for all those who love photography, while photos of them represent precious memories. You don't often get the chance of taking a photo of a gorgeous, haughty tiger, or a furious lion. In a world where rules are unwritten and a fierce paradox of a pure, yet cruel life predominates, there is nothing else you can do than remain speechless and marvel. Being a part of this amazing show is a privilege, while the images represent real art.

What really gives sense to our lives? Are those material things the source of real happiness? In a world where everything seems to be fake and artificial, there are certain things that can still remain untouched and pure. When clear water and cold, white snow can make our hearts throb in the most innocent way ever, happiness is no longer a stranger feeling to us. We have always admired butterflies for their fragile beauty and their freedom. Still, this is not an unreachable dream for you.

5 Weird Medical Curiosities

Medicine is a very fascinating and complicated domain that never ceases to surprise us. From the first use of chloroform to phonagnosia, take a look to these 5 weird medical curiosities.

15 Amazing Facts about the Human Body

Did you know that the size of the human heart has the same size as that of his own fist? Or, did you know that women blink twice as often than men do? We are indeed amazing, complex creations that hide so many interesting mysteries. Take a look to these next 15 amazing facts about the human body.

Interesting Facts about Eclipses

Eclipses are a fabulous phenomenon and an incredible natural show. Did you know that the theoretical maximum of a solar eclipse if of 7 minutes and 31 seconds? Or that Christopher Columbus was saved by a lunar eclipse? Take a look to some interesting facts about eclipses.

Weird New Year's Eve Traditions Around the World

Broken dishes, yellow or red underwear, eating grapes...these are just three of the numerous weird New Year's Eve traditions around the world. It is said that most of these traditions will open a new year full of achievements and success.

10 Most Impressive Castles in Europe

Imposing, charming and breathtaking are the best words that describe 10 of the most impressive castles in Europe. They resisted throughout centuries hiding between their walls incredible, still unknown stories, and becoming symbols of a nation.

Neuschwanstein, Germany
This fairytale castle is one of the most promoted images when it comes to Bavaria. The astonishing Neuschwanstein castle is located in the Bavarian Alps and it was built for Bavaria’s Louis II as a homage to Richard Wagner, the king's inspiring muse. Its construction began in 1869. However, the castle was still unfinished when Louis II died in 1886. Its amazing interior architecture is specific to the romanticism of the 19th century. Every year, Neuschwanstein is visited by 1,3 million tourists. Moreover, Neuschwanstein was a source of inspiration for the castle in Disney’s 'Sleeping Beauty'. The name of the castle translates to "New Swan Stone Palace".

Bojnice Castle, Slovakia
Bojnice Castle can be found in Bojnice, Slovakia, and it is indeed one of the most impressive and romantic castles in Europe. It was built in the 12th century and it hosts one of the most beautiful and famous museums in Slovakia. The castle has numerous attractions, hosting even festivals. If you want a fairytale wedding, just like a princess in a castle, now it's possible as the castle chapel is available for weddings and other ceremonies. Originally renaissance and Gothic style, Bojnice has been rebuilt in Romanticism style back in the 19th century.

Peles Castle, Romania
Built in Sinaia, mountain town located close to Brasov, between 1873 and 1914, Peles is considered as one of the most beautiful castles in Romania and in Europe. The 300 people that worked to its construction needed two years in order to finish all the arrangements. All this time, Carol I personally supervised the work. Just after its opening, the Peles Castle suffered different changes, constantly extending. The current organization dates back from 1914, the year Carol I died. The castle has 160 rooms out of which only 35 are opened to the public and it flawlessly combines elements of various architectural styles. Still, the German Renaissance dominates. The Big Armory Room and the Reception Room are the most captivating.

Mont Saint-Michel, France
Originally designed as an abbey for pilgrims, Mont Saint-Michel castle is one of the most impressive castles not only in France, but also in Europe. It is even considered as being a real wonder of the medieval world due to the fact that it is placed on a rocky island between Normandy and Brittany. The island, situated at 5 km from the shore during the medieval era, it is surrounded by water only two times monthly in our days. Mont Saint-Michel represents a special attraction for pilgrims around the world. In the present it is one of the most famous tourist attractions in France making part of the UNESCO patrimony.

Coca, Spain
Built in the 15th century by Don Alonso de Fonseca, archbishop of Seville, Coca Castle or Castillo de Coca is considered as one of the most stunning castles in Spain. Representing a perfect combination of the Gothic and Mudéjar styles, Coca castle can be found in the Segovia province in Spain. Mudéjar is the architectural style of Islamic craftsmen living under Christian reign.

Chateau de Chambord, Loire Valley, France
This is, without any doubt, Europe's most breathtaking castles. Built back in 1547, Chateau de Chambord has 440 rooms, and can easy be recognized due to its distinct French Renaissance architecture that uniquely combines traditional French medieval forms with classical Italian structures. Chambord, the largest château in the Loire Valley, was built by King François I in part to be near to his mistress the Comtesse de Thoury, Claude Rohan, wife of Julien de Clermont. Chateau de Chambord is seen today as one of the most impressive castles in Europe and in the world too.

Prague Castle, Prague, Czech Republic
This castle is the pride of the Czech Republic capital. It is the place where the history of the entire country meets and it still represents a symbol of the nation's struggling and tumultuous past. Being one of the biggest castles in the world, Prague was built in the 19th century and it kept its intact state until today. It can be visited every day between 9 am an 5 pm.

Hohenwerfen, Salzburg, Austria
Looking just above the Salzach Valley, between the Tennen and Hagen mountains, one can see the majestic towers of the Hohenwerfen Castle. Located at 40 km south of the city of Salzburg, the impressive castle is related to the Hohensalzburg Castle, both dated from the 11th century when the former fortification was built. Hohenwerfen Castle appears in the background of “The Sound of Music” during 'Do Re Mi'. All year round, Hohenwerfen Fortress hosts a wide range of events, festive weekends, saga trails, evening tours, falconry demonstrations, and at Christmas an Advent market. The castle is also home to Austria’s very first museum of falconry. There are daily demonstrations of the high art of falconry as practiced in a number of countries.

Edinburgh Castle, Scotland, UK
Located on an extinct volcano, this amazing fortress offers fabulous views, such as the mountains of The Kingdom of Fire. Perched atop Castle Hill, Edinburgh Castle represents a national symbol and an important part of Old and New Towns of Edinburgh World Heritage. Starting with the later 17th century, the castle became a military base. Even though the garrison left in the 1920s, one can still find a military presence, ceremonial and administrative, but also regimental museums. Every year, on the Esplanade, the Military Tattoo takes place. The oldest surviving structure in the castle is St. Margaret's Chapel, which dates from the 12th century.

Miramare Castle, Trieste, Italy
This fairytale castle, built in the 19th century, is located on the Gulf of Trieste near Trieste, in the northeastern part of Italy. The surroundings are absolutely amazing, while the grounds were completely re-landscaped for the numerous tropical plants and trees. Built between 1856 and 1860 for Austrian Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian and his wife, Charlotte of Belgium, the castle's grounds also include an extensive cliff and a seashore park. Nowadays, the castle is home to a museum where one can see the original furnishings, furniture and ornaments.

5 Strange Table Manners around the World

When it comes to table manners, there are a lot of rules that strongly evolved due to practice. As so many countries, so many customs, here are 5 strange table manners around the world.

Tanzania

Russia

Afghanistan

5 Weird Christmas Traditions Around the World

All around the world there are numerous bizarre customs that in time became a part of people's lives. However, there are certain Christmas traditions that have nothing to do with the actual celebration. Take a look to 5 weird Christmas traditions around the world.

Caga tió
One of the weirdest Christmas traditions can be found in Catalonia. Every year, a Christmas or Holiday log (Tió de Nadal) is chosen, also known as “Caga tió” (the pooping log). We are talking about a 30 cm length hollow trunk or log with four little stick legs and a smiling face drawn at one of the two ends, with a red Catalan barretina made from a sock. These accessories have been added only recently, until then the trunk being rather simple. On December 8, starting with the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, Catalans “feed” the trunk every day with a candy or chocolate, covering it with a blanket in order protect it against cold nights. On Christmas Day or Christmas Eve, the tió is partly put into the fireplace and forced to “poop”. However, nowadays this part of the fireplace is rarely used. The trunk is also beaten with sticks, while people sing songs of Tió de Nadal.

Krampus
Krampus is a word originating from the old high German word “Krampen”, meaning “claw”. Krampus is Saint Nichola's scariest companion and it can be found in parts of Austria, Slovenia and Croatia. According to the tradition, in the first weeks of December, young people wear black rags and masks, sheep's skin, dragging chains and bells and frightening children. In some parts, Krampus has birch rods using them to punish the pedestrians, especially young girls. In rural communities, young adults compete in different Krampus events. While Santa Claus takes care of good children, Krampus takes care of the naughty ones.

Pickle in the Christmas tree
According to the tradition, German families hung as a final ornament of the Christmas tree a pickle-shaped glass. This ornament was very well hidden deep in the branches of the tree so that the first child to find it on Christmas morning receives a special present and will be lucky all year long.There are less Germans who know this custom and it is said that after WWII, Germans in Eastern Germany were so poor that they adorned their Christmas trees using pickles. The tradition was taken by Americans, the town of Berrien Springs being considered the international capital of pickle.

Hide all brooms!
If going in Norway for Christmas, don't be surprised if you'll not find a broom around the house. A Norwegian legend says that on Christmas Eve witches and evil spirits come out looking for brooms to ride on. Therefore, Norwegians are extremely cautious people, especially when it comes to all those things that might harm them. This is why, in Norway, on Christmas Eve, everyone hides all the brooms in the house so that the bad witches and evil spirits cannot steal them and use them as “means of conveyance”. Really ingenious and practical!

Tossing shoe
Now, we kept the last tradition for all those single women who want to know if next year will be a lucky one. This is a fortune telling tradition used in the Czech Republic. Therefore, if you are unmarried and you are eager to find out if the upcoming year brings along a possible groom-to-be, you can give it a try and apply this Czech prediction method. First, you need to stand with your back to the door and toss one of your shoes over your shoulder. If the shoe lands with the toe facing the door, you should be happy as this means that you can start looking for a wedding dress as you'll soon get married. On the other hand, if the shoe lands with the heal facing the door, you'll have another year of bad luck.

Interesting Christmas Facts

Did you know that the abbreviation Xmas comes from the Greek words for “Christ”? Or that the needles of the Christmas tree are a good source of Vitamin C? Take a look to other interesting Christmas facts.

Ugliest Statues in the World

Statues are usually built to commemorate the life of an influential personality or a certain historical event, sometimes becoming the real symbol of a nation. However, there are different so-called “works of art” that are rather hilarious and can easily be considered as the ugliest statues in the world.

Boll Weevil Monument
Built in 1919 in Enterprise, Alabama, USA, the weird and ugly statue should be a sign to show one's appreciation to an insect that strongly influenced local agriculture and economy. Seen as a sign of prosperity, the Boll Weevil Monument is the only in the world that honors an agricultural pest. Weird!

The Jersey teardrop
Zurab Tsereteli seems to strike again. This time his vision materialized in Puerto Rico. As his project dedicated to Christopher Columbus was refused by five American cities, Tsereteli made a 10-story monument to the victims of September 11 attacks. The statue consists of a titanium teardrop encased in bronze that drips water. Even though accepted by the New Jersey authorities, the monument was later rejected and moved to Puerto Rico, Well, temporary, as people have been complaining of the fact that the statue looks more like a female sexual organ. Tsereteli said that his creation is a gift from Russia to the United States and a symbol of solidarity against international terrorism.

Quetzalcoatl
It seems that this statue of Quetzalcoatl (pronounced Ketz-ul-KWAT-il), an ancient Meso-American god/figure of creativity and fertility dating back to pre-Aztec times, is worth no less than $500,000. At least, this is the amount of money the authorities in the city of San Jose spent for this monument that honors the city's Hispanic heritage and culture. From a closer view the statue has a rather weird look, don't you think?

The Burnside Fountain
It should look as a boy riding a hawksbill sea turtle. The statue is the creation of Charles Y. Harvey and even though at the beginning it was placed in Central Square, Worcester, Massachusetts, it ended in Worcester Common where less children can see it.

Fiesta Jarabe
Despite the fact that this monument was dedicated to Mexican dancers, Fiesta Jarabe can easily be considered as one of the ugliest statues in the world. Not only the characters' physiognomy looks more than scary, but the colors used highly contribute to the statue's place in this top. Belonging to sculptor Luis Jimenez, Fiesta Jarabe is placed in front of the New Mexico University.

El Mesteno
It is hard to say what this next statue wants to represent. However, the result is rather an anomaly depicting a blue horse with sparkling eyes and featuring certain too prominent details. Well, it might also be our ignorance when it comes to the abstract side of modern art. You can see El Mesteno in front of the International Airport in Denver.

Sheep Statue in Canberra
This is one of those numerous things that can leave you speechless. A sitting sheep placed on one of Canberra's streets might be considered as a form of contemporary art. Since a picture is worth a thousand words, take a look to other ugly statues in the world that don't necessarily need a comment.

Pig the Cyclist in Texas, America

Skeletons in love in Nong Khai, Thailand

Vomiting Fountain Sculpture in London, UK

10 Weird Animal Curiosities

Did you know that dogs have "fingerprints" too? Or, did you know that until now there were identified over 1 million animal species? If you want to discover the amazing world of animals, take a look to these 10 animal curiosities.

There are no less than 920.000 insects, 6.000 reptiles, 6.723 amphibians and 4.260 mammals in the world. At most species, the male is bigger than the female. Well, this is not the case of anacondas, where things are totally different as the female is from 3 to 5 times bigger than the male.

The Arctic Fox, or the Polar Fox, is the only fox species that changes color with the seasons. Therefore, in winter it is white to blend in with snow, while during summer it changes to brown. This is one smart way of camouflaging and many animals developed special adaptations that let them change their coloration as their surroundings change.

The head of the Praying Mantis or European Mantis (mantis religiosa) has a different position. It is called the praying mantis for its prominent front legs that are bent at an angle that suggests the position of prayer. This is the only insect that can rotate its head at 180 degrees in order to scan the surroundings. Another curiosity and oddity is that it has two compound eyes and three simple ones located between them.

A baby kangaroo is called a joey, A baby kangaroo stays in its mother's pouch for nine months. It is born at a very immature stage, when it is only about 2 cm long and weighs less than a gram. Immediately after birth the baby crawls up the mother's body and enters the pouch and it stays there till it's quite large.

There are more termites than humans. Scientists say that they outweigh humans by almost ten to one. Moreover, a termite colony can make the biggest insect hill in the world measuring 10-12 meters tall. Also, termites have been known to eat food twice as fast when heavy metal music is playing.

Dogs have “fingerprints” too. The only difference is that they are found on the nose. Every single dog has a personal, unique print on the nose which allows its identification. Moreover, the tigers' skin is striped too, not only the fur. Overall, they have about 100 stripes and their pattern is unique at every tiger, just like human fingerprints.

Now, talking about laziness. The snail is very well-known for its slow movement. In one day a snail moves maximum 10 meters and only on a smooth surface. Among all the lazy animals, koala bear seems to have no rival as this small mammal sleeps about 22 hours daily.

The average flying speed of carrier pigeons (homing pigeons) is around 80 km/h, but speeds up to 177 km/h were observed in top racers for short distance. The use of pigeons in order to carry messages was called “pigeon post”. If trained, a carrier pigeon can carry up to 75 g on its back.

The sweat glands of a cow are in its nose. Cows don't bite grass, but they curl their tongue around it. A cow usually spends 6-7 hours in day eating cud and around 8 hours on chewing it. Almost all the cows chew at least 50 times per minute.

The Emperor Penguin is the tallest and heaviest of all living penguin species with almost 1.2 meters tall and weigh 30 to 40 kg. It lives in the coldest environment of any bird species where temperatures can drop as low as -140 degrees Fahrenheit (-60 degrees Celsius) on the Antarctic ice. What is interesting about it is that in its case the male is the one that incubates the one egg the female lays. The male doesn't eat or drink anything for about three months during the incubating period.

10 Curiosities about Elevators

Did you know that elevators are twenty times safer than escalators? Or, that the fastest elevator carries people from the ground to the 101st floor in 39 seconds? Take a look to other 10 curiosities about elevators.

Ancient elevators were tracked even back in the Middle Ages that functioned by human or animal power or water-driven mechanisms. During the 1800's, elevators operated by steam or hydraulic plungers inside a vertical cylinder. Water from the water main and later under high pressure pumped by steam forced the plunger up and carried the elevator up. The relaxation of pressure allowed the plunger to sink, carrying the elevator down.

In 1853, Elisha Graves Otis exhibited at Crystal Palace in New York a passenger elevator operated by steam. History says that in order to test the safety device, Elisha Otis fixed the car at 10 meters above the ground, walked into the elevator and ordered to cut the rope that sustained the car. The car started descending but surprisingly and fortunately after a few seconds it stopped. The device he invented functioned impeccably. He obtained the patent for this invention on January 15, 1861.

The first elevators approximately similar to what we see today started appearing in the 19th century, while the first passenger elevator was installed in 1857 by the Otis Elevator Company at 488 Broadway in New York City.

After the hydraulic phase, the first electric elevator was built by Siemens in Mannheim, Germany, back in 1878. The patent was issued in the same year to Siemens and Halske.

In 1889, at the Universal Exhibition in Paris, the famous tower built by Gustav Eiffel had five steam-driven hydraulic elevators, of which two by Roux-Combaluzier, two inclined Otis elevators and one Edoux with one car balancing another. Installing elevators for the public on the Eiffel Tower (324 meters tall) was a tricky business since there wasn't no previous experience regarding elevators going to such heights and with such loads.

In 1918, in New York, the first rules regarding the functioning of elevators were established. Therefore, their speed was restricted at about 200 meter per minute. However, in 1931, when the Empire State Building was built the speed was raised to 300 meters per minute.

The only known case of an elevator car falling free due to a snapped cable was in 1945. A B25 Bomber crashed into the Empire State Building, severing the cables of two elevators. The elevator car on the 75th floor had a woman on it, but she survived.

The two fastest elevators in the world are located in the Taipei 101 building in Taiwan. They carry people from the ground to the 101st floor in 39 seconds, meaning 1,010 meters per minute. The cars are fitted with pressure control systems and they are streamlined in order to reduce noise and vibration.

It seems that human imagination has no limits. In 1960, Russian scientist Yuri Artsutanov imagined a spatial elevator that could establish a connection between Earth and a spatial station on a geostationary orbit. The cable should have 36.000 km length, but it doesn't exist a material for the invention to become reality. However, the key concept of the space elevator appeared in 1895 and it belongs to the Russian scientist Konstantin Tsiolkovsky.

In certain regions where there is a more conservative Jewish population, on Sabbath, when there is the interdiction of using electricity, elevators stop automatically at every floor, without having to push the buttons. This thing relies on the principle using the passengers' potential gravitational energy.

Craziest Guinness World Records 2011

On September 15, 2010 the new Guinness World Records 2011 was published containing numerous amazing world records. The book includes hundreds of stunning records such as the smallest cow, the longest nose or the hairiest man. Take a look to some of the craziest records in the Guinness World Records 2011.

The 2011 edition of the Guinness World Records in September this year. The 55th book in the series seems to hold its own record as the best-selling copyrighted series of all time.

Mehmet Ozyurek from Turkey has the longest nose. Born in Turkey in 1949, Mehmet has been confirmed as having the world's longest nose. When it was measured on July 6, 2007, his nose had 8.8 cm (3.5 inches).

Dr. David R. Adamovich (“The Great Throwdini”, USA) successfully set the world record for throwing 102 knives around his partner Tina Nagy (USA) in just 1 minute, in Freeport, New York, on December 26, 2007.

Jesus Manuel Fajardo Aceves from Mexico, nicknamed Wolfman, holds the World Guinness Record as the hairiest man in the world. He has a condition known as hypertrichosis, sometimes called Wolfitis or Werewolf Syndrome. Jesus Manuel was born in a family of 19 people, all of the suffering from Congenital Generalized Hypertrichosis. Women are covered with a light to medium coat of hair while the men of the family have thick hair on approximately 98% of their body except their hands and feet.

Wei Shengchu holds the record for “Most Needles in the Head”. Shengchu (China) had 2,009 needles inserted into his head on the set of the Lo Sho dei Record in Milan, Italy.

The world's longest documented hair belongs to Xie Qiuping (China) having 5.627 m (18 ft 5.54 inches) when measured on May 8, 2004. The woman began growing her hair to its current length in 1973 at the age of 13.

With a tongue measuring 11.43 cm (4.5 inches) long, a Pekingese named Puggy is known as having the longest tongue on a dog in the new Guinness World Records 2011.

The smallest cow is only 85 cm (33 inches) tall but has had nine normal-sized calves. The 11 year old Swallow from Yorkshire poses alongside Freddie the Bull for the launch of Guinness World Records 2011.

British man Stephen Parkes owns the largest collection of Smurf memorabilia. The 44-year-old man from Nottingham poses with part of his record-breaking collection of Smurf memorabilia of 1,061 items.

A Jack Russell called Anastasia set the record in the Guinness World Records 2011 for the fastest time to pop 100 balloons in just 44.49 seconds.