Klunk Garden is a bizarre art installation createt by the Austrian art collective known as Gelitin. It’s basically a Zen rock garden with various human parts coming out of it.

You’ve probably seen some photos of the Klunk Garden before (I know I have), but they never came with some info about what exactly you were looking at. Gelitin is made up of four Austrian artists who like to shock the art world as often as they can. Their Klunk Garden was unveilled last year, in Tokyo, and combined the traditional Zen Buddhist garden, with some human parts coming out of it. The most disturbing thing about it was that those were the behinds, heads, and hands of real people standing below the art installation.

The Klunk Garden was widely interpreted as a bodily attack on Zen Buddhism, as the naked body parts interrupt the fluid perfection of the raked lines of rocks. Read More »

The festival-friendly city of Leipzig, in Germany, has hosted the 19th edition Wave Gotik Treffen, considered the world’s largest Goth event.

Around 25,000 Goth fans, from all over Europe, gathered in Leipzig, four a 3 day festival (22 – 24 May), that started back in 1992. Covered in tons of eyeliner and makeup, and sporting shiny jewelry and extreme piercings, attendees paraded their eccentric outfits, on the city streets, and turned Leipzig into a dark fantasy realm, if only for a few days.

During the Wave Gotik Treffen, Goth enthusiasts enjoy Goth rock concerts, theatrical performances, film premieres, exhibitions and discussions on various philosophical topics. Take a look at some of the coolest costumes from the recently ended Wave Gotik Treffen 2010:

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In order to better familiarize the people of Chelyabinsk (the city that brought us the human smiley face) with the tragedies and heroes of World War II, local authorities have created a giant Hero Book.

6 meters long, 3 meters wide and weighing around 600 kilograms, the Hero Book of Chelyabinsk contains photos of the people who were killed here, during World War 2, and stories about how they fought for the freedom of Mother Russia.

Photos by CFP via Cri Online

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Inspired by a Charlie Chaplin comedy, the World Custard Pie Championship is held every year, since 1967, in the village of Coxheath, Britain.

Teams came from as far as Germany and South Africa to compete in one of the wackiest events on the face of the Earth. Working in teams of five, contestants had to throw pies as accurately as possible, and hit opponents in certain parts of their bodies, to gather as many points as possible. Hitting an adversary in the face, earns the maximum of six points. Judges will also grant an extra five points for original and amusing styles of pie throwing.

Twelve teams took part in the World Custard Pie Championship 2010, and the champions were the High Pressure Cleaning team, who disposed of last’s year’s winners, Coxheath, in the final match. The pies used don’t actually contain custard, but they are made using a secret recipe.

The World Custard Pie Championship began as a charity event, in 1967, and as the years went by, it became more and more popular. Now bankers, and other people working in stressful environments welcome the opportunity to just let go and pummel someone with pies.

Photos by DAVID ROSE via Telegraph.co.uk

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I’m glad to present an ice-cream that could go into the record  books as tastiest dessert ever created, the Every Topping under the Sun-dae

The idea for this delicious concoction belongs to the guys at TopCultured, who thought those giant Cold Stone ice-creams could be even better if they contained all the toppings the creamery offers. So they simply mixed all the 40 toppings (!!!) into one delicious piece of heaven, and had one guy go through the “torture” of eating the whole thing. In case your wondering, he did eat the entire Every Topping under the Sun-dae, and he’s still around to tell his tale.

This sweet heart-stopper consists of 1 quart of Sweet Cream ice cream, 1 quart of Oreo Cream Filling ice cream and the 40 toppings listed below:

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Probably the only one of its kind, in the world, the Snake Temple, in Penang, Malaysia, is home to bothe people and some of the most dangerous snakes on Earth.

Located at Sungai Kluang, on Penang Island, the Snake Temple is also known as Temple of the Azure Cloud or Pure cloud Temple, in honor of Penang’s beautiful skies. It’s a safe haven for pit vipers, said to be servants of Chor Soo Kong, the resident deity of the temple. According to legend, Chor Soo Kong, who was a Chinese monk and healer, once offered shelter to the snakes of the jungle, who then started coming in of their own free will.

Thousands of devotees travel to the Snake Temple of Penang, every year, and they aren’t bothered by the dozens of venomous snakes coiled around the temple. Some say it’s the work of Chor Soo Kong, while others believe pit vipers, known as one of the most aggressive snake species, are made drowsy by the smoke of the incense burning in the temple.

Unfortunately, the snake population of the Penang Snake Temple has decreased constantly, due to the urbanization of the area. If you’re brave enough to enter, you should know there’s no admission fee.

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Many said she would never make it, but teenager Jessica Watson shut them all up when she completed her months long journey, and sailed into Sydney Harbor, on May 15, 2010.

The Australian sailor took off on her daring trip around the world, on October 18, 2009, all by herself. For over 200 days and 23,000 nautical miles, Jessica was all alone on her 30-foot-long pink yacht, “Ella’s Pink Boat”. She had to overcome strong winds, waves as high as mountains, and loneliness, in order to prove young people can accomplish their dreams, whatever they might be.

Ms. Watson said the toughest times were when bad weather was forecast, and she had to fight against monster storms. But she managed to keep her cool, kept her boat afloat, and against all odds, complete her journey around the world.

Having become the world’s youngest person to sail around the world, non-stop and unassisted, Jessica Watson captured the attention and admiration of the whole world, and become rich and famous, in consequence. While she was away at sea, her team managed to secure deals estimated at around $1 million, with several companies, including one of Rupert Murdoch’s newspapers. She also has a nationwide book tour coming up, for her “True Spirit: The Aussie Girl Who Took on the World” book, due to come out in July, as well as other souvenir sales.

But saying Jessica Watson did it all for media attention and profit just wouldn’t be fair. She is clearly in love with the ocean, and she said that even after seven lonely months at sea, she was reluctant to leave the pink yacht that had become “more than a home”.

Photos via CourrierMail

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Looking at the photo, below, you’re probably thinking something like “that’s a nice looking villa”, only it’s really just a Chinese public toilet.

This luxurious public facility was built on Nanshan Road, Xiamen, near the city’s residential area. It covers 100 square meters, offering clean, spacious toilets, for both men and women. Realizing people would probably mistake it for a private villa, city authorities placed a big “Nanshan public toilets” sign, on the balcony.

Even so, passers by were reluctant to use the fancy toilet, so another sign was added, on the sidewalk. This one says “free, open, civilized service”. Both men’s and women’s toilets feature artistically designed signs, and the second floor of this public toilet villa houses the administrator’s office. Although hundreds of people use this fancy restroom, every day, he says he never sensed any foul smells.

via CRI Online

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Once used as deadly weapons, to slash enemies apart, Japanese Katana swords are now used by Japanese white-collar women to slash away extra pounds and cut down stress.

The recently opened “Samurai Camp” gym, in Tokyo,  looks more like the training ground for modern amazons. More than 100 of them have signed up for this unusual fitness program that aims to help them lose 11 pounds in just one month. The inventor of samurai sword fitness, 31-year-old Takafuji Ukon, believed men would be more interested in the art of Katana wielding, but much to his surprise, women were the ones who flocked to the gym.

Ukon is not a martial arts expert, but he is a master of sword dancing, and knows just what moves to teach, so the women can shed the extra weight. Still, in order to avoid potentially deadly accidents, real swords were replaced with wooden ones, wrapped in tin foil.

Since we don’t live in an era where slashing people is allowed, Takafuji Ukon teaches his students to visualize fat and stress as the enemies, when they’re using the swords. And according to the clients of Samurai Camp, they appreciate the chance to get in touch with Japanese culture, relax, and lose weight, all at the same time.

Photos by AFP via ChinaNews

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The La Loma district, of Quezon city, in the Philippines, is famous for having a pig roaster on every street corners, but on the third Sunday of May, roasted pigs take to the streets.

Lechon is the word Filipinos use for roasted pigs. It’s derived from the Spanish word “leche” which hints that the pig must be a suckling pig. For this monumental feast, pigs are stuffed with tamarind, pandan leaves and a concoction of spices, their skins bathed in soy sauce and vinegar. They are roasted over a charcoal pit, by an expert roaster, who knows just when to turn them, until they become crispy red.

Although everyone enjoys a nice helping of delicious Lechon, complemented with liver sauce, the highlight of this Asian fiesta is the Parade of the Lechon. Roasted pigs are dressed up in funny costumes and paraded through the city streets, on the shoulders of devotees. After 50 years of celebrating the Parade of the Lechon, Filipinos have turned dressing up roasted pigs into an art. Read More »

French artist, Christian Boltanski, uses a huge crane and a giant pile of discarded clothes to explore the notion of mortality.

Located in New York City’s Park Avenue Armory, Christian Boltanski’s No Man’s Land art installation was created using 30 tons of used clothes, a metal crane, and 3,000 stacked cookie tins that block views from the outside.

Even after hearing the artist reveal the ideas behind this art project, ideas that include life, death and futility, you can’t help but compare it to that frustrating arcade game where you had to control the crane, using a joystick, without dropping the prize. Still, in Boltanski’s vision, his project is dead serious.

Every few minutes, the metal crane will drop down and randomly grab some clothes, from the 45 rectangular plots of clothes around the armory, and drop them in the big pile, in the center. This apparently symbolizes the arbitrariness of death and survival. Visitors get to see this weird art display with a background soundtrack of human heartbeats.

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Germany’s first ever strip poker tournament took place on may 12, 2010, in the Blauer Salon of the Dresden Park Hotel. 40 contestants, 33 men and 7 women, tried to keep their clothes on, for the chance to win a trip to Las Vegas.

Organized by the Billy Boy condom company, the Dresden Strip Poker Tournament got hot from the start. As there was no admission fee, contestants only had to bring their clothes, as currency, and their best game. Ladies were asked to bet responsibly and keep their clothes on as long as possible, so their male counterparts could focus on poker.

Each player was given a stack of chips, and every time they lost it, they had to take off a clothing item, to receive more. Extra chips could be earned if the stripping was entertaining, so as you can imagine, things got really hot in the Blauer Salon. Ladies were also asked to cover their nipples, so the guys could play on, undistracted.

12 of the 40 poker players advanced to the Strip Poker Championship Final, in Hamburg, where they will compete for a trip to Las Vegas, which includes 4 nights at the MGM Grand Hotel, a stretch limo and a helicopter ride over Sin City.

via Bild.de

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A giant reproduction of Vincent Van Gogh’s famous self-portrait, made out of polo shirts, is now on display in the lobby of the Marunouchi Building, near Tokyo Station.

The 10 by 10 meters mosaic was created using 2070 polo shirts, of 24 different colors. The unique creation is part of a campaign by Onward Kashiyama Co, a Tokyo-based apparel maker, to use painting colors into shirt designs. The van Gogh mosaic will remain on display, until May 16.

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The police department in Freibourg, west Switzerland, have come up with an original idea to stop motorists from driving to fast. They’ve hired a roadside angel.

Part of the “Slow Down, Take It Easy” anti-speeding campaign, the angel of Freibourg hopes to reduce the number of accidents, in the mountainous state of Switzerland. He’ll be showing up in different roadside locations, around Freibourg, and flap his wings at drivers that are going to fast.

Police hope a physical presence will make the message of the campaign even stronger and actually get people to slow down. The bearded actor who plays the angel, will work 20 hours a week,  until October. Those that spot him are encouraged to email the police department, for the chance of winning a driving lesson.

Photos by the Freibourg Police

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Now what can be more embarrassing, for a bunch of dudes, than to lose a bra untying contest to a member of the weaker sex? I’m sure she did have more practice than most of the male contestants, but still, humiliating.

During a promotional event, organized by a Chinese department store, in Gungzhou city, China, contestants were invited to test their bra untying skills. In order to win, participants had to untie the bras of eight models, in the shortest time possible, using only one hand. All the male show-offs, eager to prove their skills, were humiliated by a woman, who managed to untie all eight bras in just 21 seconds.

For her impressive achievement, the lady won 1,000 yuan ($146,5) and infinite satisfaction.

Photos via ImagineChina

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