The Atlas Obscura Podcast

The deep woods of Pennsylvania hold a phenomena that has drawn attention from scientists and people around the world, and was almost recently destroyed. To learn more about the Pennsylvania Firefly Festival visit https://www.pafireflyevents.org/.

We visit a park in Palo Alto, California, home of the world’s most famous donkey. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/the-donkeys-of-barron-park-palo-alto-california

A massive 19th-century reservoir under the city of Copenhagen has been repurposed as a contemporary art cave. We venture inside to learn more about its history, and bask in the incredible acoustics of the space.Visit Cisternerne and Frederiksberg Museerne: https://frederiksbergmuseerne.dk/da/READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/cisternerne

A swath of land in Northern France still bears scars of the destruction of World War I. Destruction so bad that, in some cases, humans have never been allowed to return.READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/zone-rouge

As part of Women’s History Month, we're sharing some episodes from the archive including this story about mysterious doors scattered throughout Atlanta. They dare you to imagine what might be found on the other side.READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/tiny-doors-atl

Writer Stacy Horn tells us about a period in American history when the study of psychic phenomena and the paranormal was serious business at places like Stanford and Duke University. And she reveals the story of J.B. Rhine and Louisa Rhine, a scholarly couple who attempted to find the line where science ended and the unbelievable began. Horn is the author of  Unbelievable: Investigations into Ghosts, Poltergeists, Telepathy, and Other Unseen Phenomena, from the Duke Parapsychology Laboratory.

We go to Tokyo, to a particular place that is both nemesis and best friend to all those procrastinators out there. (Yes, we’re looking at you :) LEARN MORE: The Manuscript Writing Cafe is open Saturdays and Sundays and you can reserve your seat online. https://koenji-sankakuchitai.blog.jp/ManuscriptWritingCafe/ 

Producer Abigail Keel takes us on the most strange, wonderful and beautiful potty break. And tells us how – and where – you can do it too. 

Writer Jessica Leigh Hester joins us on a deep dive into the sewer, the subject of her new book. We’ll talk about some of the interesting (and disgusting) things she found there … like fatbergs.FIND OUT MORE: https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/sewer-9781501379505/ 

As part of Women’s History Month Atlas Obscura will be sharing some episodes from the archive, including this story about the origins of a Swedish holiday tradition which evolved from sinister pagan lore to a celebration of light, warmth and music.