The newspaper house

Who said newspapers are only good for reading?!?

This ingenious project was built with the help of over 1000 participants, some who provided the newspapers and others helping in rolling them out. This original idea belongs to artist Summer Erek and it was built for Creative City. Here’s what the artist had to say about his project: “We all believed that moving into the digital era would diminish the use of paper. On the contrary, there seems to be a resurgence of printed material and newspapers, much of it free and everywhere – yet we don’t think much about where paper comes from and where it goes after we’ve used it. Newspapers pile up in our houses, lie on the streets and on public transport. The issue is not likely to disappear ; we must find creative ways to deal with it. We are urged to consume without thinking about how to discard. The first step is inviting people to think about and value the material itself, and to consider the issue of “waste”.

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Giant bicycle for a true giant

Now that’s a huge bicycle right there!

Leonid Stadnyk, the tallest man in the world, according to Guinness Book of Records, just received a wonderful gift, a bicycle large enough and strong enough to sustain his weight. The two-wheel vehicle is strengthened by additional tubes welded using special aviation welding. Designed by the Ukrainian engineer, Vladimir Hahilem, the bike was built especially to sustain Leonid’s 220 kg. weight.

This Leonid Stadnyk looks like a very nice guy, I’m really sorry to see him struggling with this condition, things must be hard when you measure 2.57 meters…

Burning crater of Darvaza

Located in desert of Turkmenistan is one of the most amazing landscapes in the world.

I know it looks like a lava-filled whole but it’s really nothing like that, it’s a man made crater dating back to the 1950s when the soviets were prospecting for natural gas. The strangest thing about it is it’s been burning ever since, that’s 58 years of continuous burn. Locals say animals are mesmerized by the flames as well, groups of thousands of spiders have been spotted plunging into the flames, as well as moths and birds. This is a one of a kind attraction and tourists say it’s worth the 3 our drive through the desert.

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New species of fish?

Now there’s another fish I didn’t know existed. Apparently nobody did…

I admit I’m not a fish connoisseur, there are many species of fish I didn’t know existed and I have just added a new one to the list. This one is a beauty though, if you know what it is, please a comment, I’d appreciate it!

Incredible sand sculptures

After seeing what artists can do with snow and ice, it’s time to see how they handle sand.

I remember when I was just a little kid and traveled with my folks to the seaside, I used to make sand sculptures too…but nothing like the ones presented at the Harrison Hot Springs. Also known as the Sand Sculpture Capital of the World, Harrison is the place where artists from across the globe gather to measure their skills and create some of the most impressive works of art I’ve ever seen. I’ll let the photos convince you of their talent.

India’s Street dentists

Can’t afford to go to the dentist? Go for a walk and you may get your teeth fixed too!

I for one wouldn’t go to a guy that gets me in a headlock, while he pulls my teeth out with rusty pliers, on the corner of a dusty street, no matter how cheap it is, but hey, that’s just me. I’ve heard these guys are quite capable and can perform just about any operation that a normal dentist can…but still, I just couldn’t do it. Sure you have a wide variety of teeth to choose from, teeth that are stored in a briefcase, but I guess I’m very picky!

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Argungu fishing festival

Argungu is am important Nigerian cultural event, to which thousands of fishermen take part.

Argungu takes place in the North-Western Nigerian state of Kebbi, where an army of fishermen gather with one goal in mind, to catch the largest fish. So at the sound of a gun they all plunge into the muddy waters of the Matan Fada stream, in teams of two, one armed with two calabash (used for flotation and fish storage) and the other with two giant fish nets.

The Matan Fada may not be very impressive but it’s full of fish, because people come here to fish only once a year. After the one our time limit is over, the team who caught the largest fish is escorted by the sultans’s guards to present their prize to him. The winners receive a brand new bus as a prize as well as one million Naira (around $7500).

Nigeria hopes the Argungu fishing festival will soon become an important tourist attraction.

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Buzkashi, sport of the nomads

Buzkashi is a traditional Central Asian team sport, played on horseback. It’s a known fact that the people of the steppes were skilled riders, able to pick up sheep and goats from the ground while riding a horse in full gallop, and this sport is inspired by their extraordinary skill.

The goal of a Buzkashi player is to pick up the carcass or head of a dead goat or calf, get it as far away from the other players and ultimately pitch it across a goal line or into a circle or vat. I know, it sounds a lot like horseback polo, except for the dead animal, but there is another big difference between these sports: players can use any means, except tripping the horse, to stop scoring attempts. Players usually wear thick clothes and head protection to shield them from kicks or whip lashes.

Although some Central-Asian countries have tried to get Buzkashi accepted as an olympic sport, they haven’t succeeded in convincing anyone.

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Paradise can be found in a hangar

Who says you have to go to the tropics to enjoy a tropical vacation?

Open since 2004, Tropical Islands is an indoor resort, built inside a large aircraft hangar, an hour’s drive from Berlin. It’s a man-made micro-ecosystem complete with hundreds of species of plants, sandy beaches, crystal-clear waterfalls and even bird and insect sounds made by speakers disguised as boulders. It spreads over 5 million cubic meters and it is taller than the Statue of Liberty; when the sun shines outside, visitors can actually get a tan, thanks to the effect of the sunbeams penetrating the hangar’s transparent roof, even if the weather is freezing outside.

Malaysian entrepreneur Colin Au says: “My resort means they hardly have to leave home, yet when they’re here it’s like being on a tropical cruise.”

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The Festival of Colors

Now you can see what human rainbows look like.

Holi or Phagwa is a Hindu spring festival that takes place every year in India and Nepal. On the first day of celebrations, bonfires are lit, signifying the burning of the demoness Holika. On the second day, the real Festival of Colors begins; spring and the change of weather are believed to bring illnesses like fever, flews and colds, so people throw colored powders, with medicinal significance, to chase away these illnesses. The powder can now be bought from marketplaces, but there are still those who make it in the comfort of their own homes, using various plants and flowers that give it a mesmerizing fragrance.

The Festival of Colors usually takes place at the end of February or the beginning of March, depending on when the full moon occurs.

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Longest nails in the world

I wonder how this woman bathes, cooks or even wipe her own ass…

Lee Redmond holds the record in the Guinness Book of Records for longest fingernails on both hands. She lives in Salt Lake City, Utah and has been growing her nails ever since 1979. She is frequently referred to as The Queen of Long Nails and she has made appearances on CBS and Ripley’s Believe It Or Not Museum.

Although she had planned to cut her nails on November 22 2006, so she could better tend to her husband, who suffers from Alzheymer‘s, she ultimately decided to keep growing them.

Both her hands’ fingernails add up to a staggering 7 meters and 51.3 centimeters.

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Reach in and touch the inner cow

As weird as this may sound, I mean literally reach in and touch the inside of the cow!

In case you didn’t know animals can live perfectly well with a permanent hole in their stomachs. Scientists call these surgically made holes, fistulas, which are covered by a canulla, a sort of cover from the outside world. They are used to test the digestibility of various cattle food, the cows are fed and as the food passes through her stomachs, scientist can just reach in and see how it is processed. As brutal as it might look, this doesn’t hurt the animals at all, it actually prolongs their life, in case of stomach disease, they can receive helping medicine directly in there.

The one thing I don’t approve of is people sticking their hand in animals just out of curiosity, like the kid in our photo. Sure it’s not something you’d call ordinary, but turning a medical procedure into a circus isn’t very ethical.

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Antelope canyon

One of the most beautiful canyons in the world, Antelope is the most visited and photographed canyon in America.

Antelope is also the place where Britney Spears shot her “I’m not a girl, not yet a woman” video and also the place where many scenes from 1996 motion picture Broken Arrow were filmed.

Antelope canyon has been open to the public since 1997, when the Navajo Tribe turned it into a Navajo Tribal Park. It’s famous for being a place that transforms photography into an art; due to the light reflecting from the walls, taking a decent picture becomes quite a challenge for those who lack the talent or the right tools.

It’s also a very dangerous place, flash floods can fill the canyon in just a few minutes, even if rain falls dozens of miles upstream of the canyon.

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The Crystal Cave of Giants

This is where you have to go if you want to see the biggest crystals on the planet.

Found in Naica mine of Chihuahua, Mexico, the Crystal Cave of Giants is a chamber hosting some of the most amazing crystals you’ve ever seen. They look like silver or golden giants, and reach 11 meters in length, 1.5-2 meters in diameter and 55 tons in weight. Until 2007, the reason for their abnormal size was unknown, but now it’s clear it has something to do with mineral rich water the crystals bathed in for millions of years and the constant temperature than never drops bellow 150 degrees Fahrenheit.

Ever since it was uncovered, The Crystal Cave of Giants has sustained considerable giant from the outside world, so the mining company operating in the mine has installed iron doors to seal off access.

Photo: Alexander Van Driessche/Wikimedia Commons

Unusual collection of furniture

These are definitely some of the weirdest pieces of furniture I’ve ever seen.

Sure, many of these are very original artistic pieces, but still…how many of you would like to have to penis-shaped armchairs in your living-rooms. Still, as I said, they are to be admired for their originality.