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Rites and Rituals

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festivals

Croatia Bans Winter By Partying Like ‘Where the Wild Things Are’

Let spring's wild rumpus begin.
Justin McDonnell May 2, 2024
festivals

Spinning Balls of Fire Light Up Spring in This German Town

Plus fireworks, music, and maybe a goddess or two.
Ulrike Lemmin-Woolfrey April 30, 2024
music

Swallow-Songs for Spring Are the Greek ‘Trick or Treat’

It’s a tradition that goes back centuries.
Andrew Coletti April 30, 2024
rites and rituals

Explore Sinister Spring Tales with Atlas Obscura

We find scary stories pair well with brighter days.
Sarah Durn April 29, 2024
science

Wonder Is Everywhere: Return of the Crooked House, World's Oldest Bread, and More From Around the Web

Get a peek into what we’re obsessed with right now.
April White March 15, 2024
festivals

The Italian Town That Welcomes Winter With a Procession of Fire

Every December, thousands of torches transform Agnone into the fire capital of the world.
Asia London Palomba December 13, 2023
universities

Podcast: Rites of Passage

Time to go back to school to appreciate some unusual campus traditions with the Altas Obscura Places Team.
The Podcast Team September 8, 2023
Seoul, South Korea

Hwangudan

The site where the Emperor of Korea performed the long-forbidden "rite of heaven" to demonstrate his absolute sovereignty.
Etna, Maine

Camp Etna

A major spiritual gathering place in central Maine since the mid-1800s.
snakes

The Italian Town that Welcomes Spring with Live Snakes

It's a good omen if the reptiles wrap themselves around the head of San Domenico Abate.
Dania Rodrigues May 5, 2023
music

How This Demon Dance Banishes Illnesses in Sri Lanka's Remote Jungles

The kankariya dance all started with a legendary demon queen named Kuweni.
Zinara Rathnayake May 4, 2023
witchcraft

In Poland, Drowning the Pagan Goddess Marzanna Ushers in Spring

A straw effigy of the winter goddess is burned and then submerged in chilly waters.
Sarah Laskow May 3, 2023
ancient

To Banish Winter in This Tiny Wisconsin Town, Burn a Swiss Snowman

The burning of the Bӧӧgg is like a fiery version of Groundhog’s Day, but with fireworks and sausages.
Tea Krulos May 2, 2023
festivals

Why 18th-Century Scots Performed Mock Human Sacrifices Over Cake

This May Day, make Beltane bannock, a simple snack with a long history of superstition and divination.
Sam O'Brien May 1, 2023
food

7 Weird and Wonderful King Cakes From Around the World

From slips of Bulgarian fortunes to copulating French figurines, international king cakes hide many surprises.
Matt Haines February 20, 2023
Gastro Obscura

Korovai

The Ukrainian wedding bread is so beautiful, it's displayed near the altar.
Gastro Obscura

Threads of God

To eat the world's rarest pasta, you must first complete a 20-mile pilgrimage.
victorian

Podcast: Lily Dale Spiritualist Community

Join us for a daily celebration of the world’s most wondrous, unexpected, even strange places.
The Podcast Team January 18, 2022