bluestorm1738's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Japanese Tea Ceremony
Gastro Obscura
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Japanese Tea Ceremony

A ritual that showcases the beauty of the present moment.
Gastro Obscura
Buddha's Hand
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Fruits & Vegetables

Buddha's Hand

Smells like lavender, tastes like lemon rind, looks like a gnarled claw fresh from your nightmares. 
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Okinawa Black Sugar
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Ingredients & Condiments

Okinawa Black Sugar

It's darker, saltier, and healthier than white sugar.
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Maple Leaf Tempura
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Prepared Foods

Maple Leaf Tempura

Why not fry a year-old leaf?
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Ortolan Bunting
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Prepared Foods

Ortolan Bunting

A cruel cooking method turns this tiny songbird into a rare delicacy.
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Artificial Asses' Milk
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Artificial Asses' Milk

Donkey milk was once so coveted that people used snails to make an artificial version.
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Salt Cellars
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Salt Cellars

These embellished containers didn’t just sit pretty on the table; they determined social standing.
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Tea Dance
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Tea Dance

The surprisingly subversive history of dancing over afternoon tea.
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Timanoix
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Meats & Animal Products

Timanoix

Monks and nuns elevate this soft cheese with a wash of walnut liqueur.
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Green Chartreuse
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Drinks

Green Chartreuse

Only two silent monks know all 130 plants that go into this herbal liqueur.
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Salema Porgy
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Meats & Animal Products

Salema Porgy

After dining on this fish, your next course might be 36 hours of hallucinations.
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Lamprey
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Meats & Animal Products

Lamprey

A prehistoric sea monster sucks blood, then gets cooked in its own.
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Cougnou
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Sweets

Cougnou

This Christmas bread is formed in the shape of the baby Jesus.
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Croquembouche
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Sweets

Croquembouche

This French wedding cake is a caramel-wrapped tower of pastry balls.
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Roudoudous
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Sweets

Roudoudous

These French candies originally came in seashells.
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Yule Log Cake
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Sweets

Yule Log Cake

These holiday cakes link Christmas to the Norse god of lightning.
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Ambergris
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Ingredients & Condiments

Ambergris

Whale excrement once flavored ice cream.
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Aligot
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Prepared Foods

Aligot

These extra-cheesy potatoes resemble decadent fondue.
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Poire Williams
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Drinks

Poire Williams

Before they're filled with brandy, these bottles get attached to trees so pears can grow inside.
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Brie Noir
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Meats & Animal Products

Brie Noir

Brie's dark, older cousin can only be found in one region of France.
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Floating Island
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Sweets

Floating Island

The 17th-century dessert plants an isle of meringue in a sea of custard.
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Vin Mariani
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Drinks

Vin Mariani

Presidents and popes loved this cocaine-infused wine.
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Jagua
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Fruits & Vegetables

Jagua

This fruit makes tattoos, antibiotics, and dessert.
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T’anta Wawa
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Prepared Foods

T’anta Wawa

On All Souls' Day, South Americans celebrate life and death with "baby bread."
Gastro Obscura