THAT’S INSANE
TRAGEDY STRIKES: WHEN A MAN’S BALD HEAD WAS MISTAKEN FOR A ROCK
The ancient Greek playwright Aeschylus was born in Eleusis, in 525 BC. He is celebrated as the father of the Greek tragedy. Before Aeschylus, Greek tragedies had only one actor and a chorus. He revolutionized tragic theater by having actors interact with each other rather than just the chorus. This added conflict and energy to the genre. He wrote an estimated 70 to 90 plays but only a few survive.
How fitting for the father of tragedy to suffer a tragedy himself. As a young man he received a prophecy that he would be killed by a falling object. So afraid this would come to pass, he chose to frequently live outdoors, believing he was safer under the sky. The prophecy, however, proved to be true. In 455 BC, at the approximate age of 68, an eagle flying overhead was carrying a tortoise in its mouth. Wanting to crack open the shell, the eagle dropped the tortoise on Aeschylus’ bald head thinking it was a rock, killing him.
MISSING WOMAN FINDS HERSELF
In Iceland’s southern volcanic region lies a spectacular wonder to behold: Eldgjia Canyon. It is the world’s largest volcanic canyon, formed during a devastating historic eruption in 939 that destroyed the surrounding villages and affected global climate. Today it is a major tourist attraction.
In 2012, a sightseeing bus tour set off to enjoy the splendor. At a rest stop, passengers alerted the bus driver that a woman had failed to return after disembarking earlier. They waited about an hour. The driver then called the police. An intense search for the missing tourist commenced. Fifty people joined the hunt, with a Coast Guard helicopter preparing to join as well. After many hours, the search ended in the early morning hours when a member of the search party stepped forward and informed the police, she was the person they were looking for.
The woman revealed she had left the bus to freshen up and change her clothes. When she returned to the bus, the bus driver and passengers apparently didn’t recognize her, thinking she had never returned. She heard a description of the missing woman on the radio, “Asian, dark clothes and speaks English well”, but didn’t realize it was her they were describing. After she had been searching for herself in the cold, dark night, it finally dawned on her.
How did this happen? It appears the problem might have been twofold. By coincidence, the only tour bus driver in the world, to not take a head count, had the dumbest passengers in the world on his bus.
THE LEGEND OF HOW THE SCOTS FOUGHT OFF THE VIKINGS
There is a legend that claims the Vikings attempted to invade Scotland in 1263 by staging a night raid. They planned to sneak up on the Scottish army while they slept. To ensure their raid would be a complete surprise, the Vikings took off their thick boots to attack in silence.
Walking bare feet, they stepped into a field of sharp prickly wild thistle. In pain, they let out loud screams awaking the Scots. Alerted, to the invasion, the Scots fought back and won. This story gives insight into why Scotland made the wild thistle the national symbol of Scotland, standing for the resilience of the Scottish people.
THE CIA TURNED A CAT INTO A $15 MILLION SCIENCE EXPERIMENT
In the 1960s in the middle of the Cold War, the CIA was looking for new ways to spy on the Soviet Union. They operated classified animal espionage programs. Although cats are famously independent, someone had the brilliant idea to train cats to be spies in order to infiltrate Soviet embassies and the Kremlin. So was born the “Acoustic Kitty”.
The program’s design was to transform the cats into spies by implanting unobtrusive recording devices concealed in their bodies. They would then be able to record and transmit information back. The plan was to implant a microphone in a test cat’s ear canal, a radio transmitter at the base of its skull and a thin wire into its fur.
Its first secret mission was to listen in on two men sitting on a park bench in Washington D.C., outside the Soviet embassy. The cat was let loose nearby and was immediately hit by a taxi and died. Subsequent attempts also failed as they could not get cats to cooperate.
The project was abandoned in 1967. In the closing document, the CIA stated, “the environmental and security factors in using this technique in a real foreign situation force us to conclude that for our (intelligence) purposes, it would not be practical”. This project was declassified in 2001 and was revealed to have cost between $15-20 million. How surprising they could not get cats to follow orders.
JULIUS CAESAR WAS CAPTURED BY PIRATES
Between 150-75 BC, when the Seleucid Empire collapsed and Rome eliminated the Macedonian fleet, Rome looked to Cilician pirates to provide the elite’s massive plantations with slave labor. Without anyone to enforce order on the seas, these pirates, once small bands of independent bandits, developed into a powerful organized fleet. The Romans grew to fear them as they commanded over one thousand ships. It was not safe for Romans to journey on the seas, as they kidnapped travelers and held them for ransom.
In 75 BC, an unfortunate group of these pirates kidnapped a young Roman nobleman who was traveling off the coast of Asia Minor near Pharmacusa in the Aegean Sea to Rhodes to study oratory. His name was Julius Caesar.
Caesar immediately started to boss the pirates around. When he was told that his ransom was to be 20 talents, he grew insulted and demanded they raise the ransom to 50 talents. When he rested, he demanded they be quiet. While waiting to be ransomed, he composed poems and speeches, then forced the pirates to listen to them. When they engaged in games, he insisted on being in charge. He would often threaten to have them crucified after his release.
The ransom was delivered 38 days after his capture. Caesar was then released. He traveled to Miletus where he raised a naval force.This in spite of the fact that at the time he held no military rank. He sailed back to Pharmacusa and found the bandits where he left them. He captured them and confiscated their treasure. When the Roman governor of Asia refused to execute them, instead preferring to sell them into slavery, Caesar went to the prison, had their throats cut and then crucified them.
PARIS SYNDROME: SEVERE DISAPPOINTMENT IN PARIS
The Japanese have long held a romanticized view of Paris. They have come to believe Paris is the gorgeous City of Lights portrayed in films, social media, and books. When Japanese tourists visit Paris, they are confronted with a severe reality check. Instead of finding charming cafes and welcoming casual pedestrians, they are met with today’s urban culture: dirty streets, forceful street vendors, crime, overcrowded public transit as well as curt and impolite Parisians. This culture shock can at times set off mental and physical symptoms.
Japanese psychiatrist Hiroaki Ota first introduced the phrase, “Paris Syndrome”. Though it is rare, it mostly affects Japanese tourists who are used to polite and indirect social interactions. The symptoms include hallucinations, rapid heartbeat, vomiting, nausea and sweating. It is regarded as transient and dissipates when suffers get rest. Although it generally happens to Japanese travelers it can happen to others and can happen in other romanticized locations where reality comes as a shock to their long-held beliefs.
MONGOL WARRIER PRINCESS WRESTLED MEN WHO WANTED TO MARRY HER
Princess Khutulun (1260-1306) was a Mongol warrior princess. Her father controlled Central Asia from Mongolia to Oxus and from India to the Central Siberian Plateau.
Since childhood, she had been trained in wrestling, riding, and shooting. She participated in military campaigns with her father, Kaidu Khan.
As his favorite child, he actively sought out her advice on political and military matters. She became a masterful wrestler and led her own cavalry. Many medieval writers chronicled her accomplishments and called her a true hero, including Marco Polo, who claimed to have met her.
She required any man who wished to marry her, to first defeat her in a traditional Mongolian wrestling match. If he won, she would marry him but if he lost, he had to give her 100 horses. Hundreds of men tried but no one could defeat her. It is believed that she amassed a herd of 10,000 horses
THE LEGEND OF THE DISAPPEARING VILLAGE OF KULDHARA
Local legend claims that in 1825, Salim Sinh, the cruel dictatorial prime minister of the Jaisalmer state in India became obsessed with the lovely daughter of a village chief. He terrified the whole village of 1,500 Paliwal Brahmins and promised severe repercussions if she was not given to him in marriage.
The villagers belonged to a Paliwal Brahmins clan of 84 villages who had lived in the community since the 13th century. The village chiefs held a council to determine what to do. They decided on a mass evacuation rather than give in to his demands. They left their homes, cattle and temples.
The villagers quickly packed up their belongings and disappeared overnight into the desert. As they were leaving, they put a powerful curse on the village promising it would remain unoccupied forever. Today, it continues to remain a ghost town due to superstition.
Researchers believe the exodus was probably due to economic hardship and water scarcity rather than a curse.
THE SCROTUM CONCEALMENT DEVICE
Tony Mendez, the C.I.A. disguise chief came up with some pretty crazy ideas in the late 1960s. One of the wildest was the scrotum concealment device. It was designed to hide a small waterproof escape radio. He intended it to be used behind enemy lines to provide downed pilots with a way to communicate.
Made of latex, this prosthetic was meant to go unnoticed even during a strip search. Molded from real anatomy it included discretely placed pubic hair to make it look natural. It had to be glued inplace.
It ended up being rejected by CIA Director Richard Helms, who blushed at the demonstration and walked out of the room. Today, it is exhibited at the International Spy Museum in Washington, D.C.
TSAR NICHOLAS’ CORONATION KILLS 1,389 PEOPLE
On May 18, 1896, the coronation of Russia’s Tsar Nicholas was held. To celebrate this event, the public was invited to the Khodynka Field in Moscow. Huge crowds assembled after learning that free food and beer would be distributed. When a rumor spread that a limited number of commemorative cups containing a gold coin would be handed out, the crowd turned into a stampede. The 1,800 policemen could not contain them. Charging ahead rapidly, the crowd trapped thousands of people in trenches killing 1,389 people.
Once the bodies were removed, the celebration continued with the Tsar holding an evening ball with French diplomats. The next day, the royal couple visited survivors in the hospital, but waiting so long to mourn the dead, ruined the Tsar’s reputation. He then became known throughout history as, “Bloody Nicholas”.
GENGHIS KHAN’S SECRET BURIAL SITE
Genghis Khan was killed in battle against the Western Xia dynasty in 1227. He was returned to his homeland to be buried in secret. He had asked his sons before he died to ensure his grave would be hidden forever. It is alleged that he was buried somewhere in the Mongol’s sacred mountain, Burkhan Khaldun in the Khenti Mountains.
The tale surrounding his burial tells of his army killing everybody they met en route so his location could never be discovered. The slaves who buried his body were killed by soldiers after they completed the job. Those soldiers were then killed by another group of soldiers who then committed suicide to guarantee that no one knew the location of his grave.
To this day, the exact location of his grave is unknown. Many have searched for it but were impeded by the local population of Mongolia due to the sacred nature of Burkhan Khaldun.
MEDIEVAL DOCTORS TREATED RESPIRATORY AILMENTS WITH FROGS
In what was called sympathetic medicine, medieval doctors treated common colds by tightly tying a live frog around the neck of their patient. They believed that this would cause the illness to be dispelled from the patient and be transferred into the frog.
Frogs were chosen due to the way they breathe. Their quick, puffing throat movement was believed to be a sign that they were pulling in the illness into their own bodies and sucking out the phlegm and inflammation,
To treat tuberculosis and asthma, they would often prescribe swallowing young frogs. Frogs were also mixed with honey or crushed into powder to address joint pain and ulcers.
THE DOGON AND THE STAR SIRIUS
The Dogon tribe of Mali, West Africa have extensive knowledge of the star system as part of their religious beliefs. They claim they were given this wisdom by aliens who came to earth from the Sirius star system. They assert that these aliens, known as Nommo, were primordial amphibious creatures with glowing red eyes, that taught ancient cultures the foundations of civilization including detailed astronomical knowledge.
The Dogon maintained that the star Sirius had a companion star, Sirius B which could not be seen by the naked eye. It moves in an elliptical orbit around Sirius every fifty years. In the 1930s, four Dogon priests shared this secret with two anthropologists who immediately dismissed the claim. Sirius B, a white dwarf, had been discovered by a scientist, Alvan Graham Clark in 1862. The Dogon tribe were isolated and remote people that had no telescopes or any other scientific equipment. They also claim there is a third star in the Sirius system named Emme, which scientists have not discovered to date.
HOW A POSTAGE STAMP DECIDED THE LOCATION OF THE PANAMA CANAL
When the United States decided to build a canal to connect the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, it was undecided between Nicaragua and Panama. Nicaragua was the favored choice because it was a stable country, would be easier location to engineer since it already had a lake in the center of the proposed zone, and was a shorter route. Panama had just declared itself an independent nation from Columbia and building there could affect America’s relationship with Columbia.
Panama was also less favored because the French had been attempting to unsuccessfully build a canal in Panama for twenty years. Their main failure was insisting on building a sea level canal through difficult terrain. They were stopped by the extensive summer rainy seasons, malaria and yellow fever, losing 22,00 workers. It bankrupted the company attempting to build the canal and their investors. The French pressed the United States to finish the canal they started, so they could sell them their equipment and land rights for $40 million.
During the 1902 congressional debates to determine the fate of the canal, a French lobbyist mailed every congressman a Nicaraguan 10-centavo stamp which pictured the active, smoking Momotombo volcano. He contended that volcanic and seismic threats made Nicaragua too dangerous a place to build the canal. His argument led to Congress choosing Panama for the canal’s location. The canal opened in 1914, using a successful lock-based design.
VIKINGS WERE CLEAN BARBARIANS
Vikings are often portrayed as savage barbarians. They were a tribe of people that suddenly appeared across Europe, taking advantage of the collapse of the Roman Empire. Archaeological evidence brings to light a different side to them. They were fastidious about personal cleanliness. They bathed at least once a week, usually on Saturday. This habit was a long-standing tradition among Vikings, heralding back to the old Norse word “laugardagr” meaning “wash day”. They habitually washed their faces and hands from soap they made from animal fat and wood ash. They combed their hair daily. Beards were meticulously maintained, being washed, trimmed, oiled and styled. Their hair was styled long in the front with the back of the neck shaved. At numerous Viking excavations razors, nail picks, ear cleaning scoops and tweezers were discovered. They were thoughtful hosts, ensuring their guests were treated with the utmost respect, providing them with clean towels and fresh water.
And yes, they stormed into towns and villages across Europe, torched buildings, plundered, raped, murdered and enslaved the young population to be sold in public markets across Europe and Scandinavia. So yes, they were savage barbarians but very well-groomed ones.
SEX TOY MISTAKEN FOR THE MUSHROOM OF IMMORTALITY
In the rural community of Liucunbun in western China, villagers were drilling a new well shaft when they came upon an object they could not identify. No one in the village had ever seen anything like it. They called the local news station for help. A young reporter was dispatched to solve the mystery of this strange, fleshy, fungi-like curiosity. Taping the story for the news station, she described the item in precise detail, interviewed the people who discovered it and did extensive research on the origin of the object.
The reporter and the locals determined that it was a lingzhi, a fungus of the Ganoderma lucidum species which is believed to provide immortality. Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China was obsessed with finding the lingzhi and sent out expeditions in search of it. He did not, however, find immortality. He died in 210 BC at the age of forty-nine.
The reporter stated on air that the fungus is rarely found since it grows underground. After the program was aired, it was immediately recognized that the reporter had mistaken a double ended sex toy made to look like female genitalia for the magical taisui mushroom.
The television station issued an apology stating, “Our program last night made everyone laugh,” regretting the uncomfortable and misleading report. “Our reporter is very young and sheltered.”
THE DAY THE RUSSIANS RAN OUT OF VODKA
When the Russians defeated the Nazis on the Eastern Front at the end of World War II, its citizens heard the news on the radio and took to the streets in celebration. Twenty-two hours later, Joseph Stalin announced this news to his nation. He expected everyone to raise a glass of vodka to celebrate the victory. By the time Stalin made his announcement, all the vodka in the country had been consumed.
Since the government was in control of vodka production, Stalin made sure that despite famine ravishing the country during the war, potatoes and grain were not distributed to the people but used for vodka production. The government, for this joyous occasion, released their stockpile of vodka, so that every citizen enjoyed a few drinks before the country completely ran out of vodka.
THE GREAT IRISH WHISKEY FIRE OF 1875
In June of 1875, a fire broke out in Dublin one night at a whiskey storehouse in the Liberties. This was a historic working-class distilling district. There were 315,200 gallons of whiskey stored in the storehouse. Intense heat caused the barrels in the storehouse to explode. Cask strength liquor cascaded out of windows and doors and onto the street and burst into flames. Cask strength refers to full potency spirits. Commercial spirits are mixed with water to drop alcohol levels to between 40% to 46%.
Area livestock pens caught fire. Pigs were trapped and began squalling loudly. The sounds of the pigs alerted the neighborhood to the emergency. People rushed out of their homes to find a burning river of whiskey, two feet wide and six inches deep flowing through the neighborhood. During the evacuation, the crowd gathered by the streams of whiskey which ran through the gutters and took advantage of the circumstances. They filled containers, boots, hats, cupped hands, anything that could hold the burning liquid. The fire was eventually put out by using sand and manure to keep the fire from spreading.
Thirty-five house were destroyed; families were displaced and livestock killed. Gratefully, no people died as a result of the fire. Unfortunately, 24 individuals were rushed to the hospital from lethal alcohol poisoning after consuming undiluted cask-strength alcohol. Thirteen people never recovered and died.
The tragic event is immortalized by a spiced Irish whiskey brand, “Flaming Pig,” honoring the pigs that alerted residents to the fire and allowed for a quick evacuation.
THE ISLAND OF THE DOLLS
Don Julian Santana Barrera wanted to live a solitary life. In the 1950s, he left his family behind and moved to an abandoned floating garden in the canals of Xochimilco, Mexico. These beautiful canals are located approximately 17 miles south of Mexico City. One day he heard the cries of a young girl drowning. He attempted to save her but failed. The next day, the canal revealed a doll in the same spot where the girl had drowned. He assumed the doll belonged to the girl.
To honor the girl and as an amulet to keep evil spirits off the island, he hung the doll from a tree. He concluded that the small island was haunted by the girl’s ghost and he spent the next fifty years collecting dolls and hanging them from trees to appease her spirit.
Most of the dolls he found were not intact, missing their heads or limbs. He hung over four thousand filthy, rotting dolls from trees all over the island. He found some in garbage dumps or floating in the canal; others were given to him by passing boaters or traded for vegetables from his garden.
Many people have doubted there was ever a drowning girl but believed it was a product of his imagination. No girl was ever reported missing.
He was found dead in 2001 in the exact spot where he claimed to have found the girl’s body. Since his death, his family has operated the island as a tourist attraction.
A SIMPLE ERROR CAUSED NASA TO LOSE A $125 MILLION SPACECRAFT
In 1999, Lockheed Martin co-developed a Mars Climate Orbiter with NASA using imperial units in the measurement of thruster performance data. These use inches, feet, yards, miles, ounces and pounds. This system uses irregular units such as twelve inches to a foot and three feet to a yard.
Lockheed Martin designed, built and tested the spacecraft, while NASA’S Jet Propulsion Laboratory managed the mission. NASA ran all the data through their trajectory software which used metric units for measurement. These used millimeters, centimeters, meters, kilometers, grams and kilograms. The metric system is based on the number ten.
The software did not convert the imperial units to metric units, causing a conversion error between the two unmatched systems. NASA did not correct this error. Each thrust resulted in a 4.45 to 1 error. During its nine months voyage, the small discrepancy mounted, pushing the spacecraft off course. It plummeted into Mar’s atmosphere where it burned up. The loss of this spacecraft cost NASA $125 million. This calamity compelled NASA to institute improved communication between internal departments and contractors.
WHITE ELEPHANTS IN SIAM DROVE THEIR OWNERS TO BANKRUPTCY
A legend tells of the King of Siam (present day Thailand) gifting people he disliked with a white elephant. The rare albino animal is considered sacred in the Siamese culture. Since the elephant was blessed by the king, the new owner was not allowed to have the elephant perform any work nor could it be ridden. A gift from the king could not be refused or given away. Thus, the animal’s upkeep presented a huge burden to the recipient, who was forced to keep the elephant so as not to offend the king. They often went bankrupt feeding, pampering and housing an animal that size while it provided no benefit to them.
The white elephant is sacred due to its association with the Budda’s birth. His mother dreamed that a white elephant gifted her with a lotus flower just before she became pregnant with the Budda. The color white signifies purity and devotion in Buddhism, despite the fact that the white elephant is rarely white but brownish pink. In Hinduism, white elephants are associated with Airavata, the multi headed heavenly horse of the god Indra.
The term white elephant has come into our culture as something that is expensive and useless.
VIKINGS SET OUT TO SACK ROME BUT LANDED IN THE WRONG CITY
Vikings had operated in Scandinavia far from the center of Europe. That was until they realized Christian cities were affluent and insufficiently protected. They then started to strike all over Europe sacking city after city.
In the year 860, a fleet of 62 Viking ships, led by Bjorn Ironside and Hastein set its sights on sacking Rome. Unfortunately, when they sailed into the coastal city of Luni in Northern Italy, and observed its enormous marble walls, they immediately mistook it for Rome. Realizing they could not directly attack the city due to its fortification, they came up with a plan.
Hastein faked a grave illness. He sent a group of his men to meet with city leaders, claiming to be humble voyagers. They maintained that their king desired to convert to Christianity before he died. They requested a Christian burial within the city. When a group of his men carried him into the church, Hastein jumped up and his men killed the bishop. They threw open the gates of the city, and the Viking army flooded in.
After looting the city, Hastein declared himself the “Conqueror of Rome”. He was then informed he was not in Rome. He became incensed and had every male in the city slaughtered. The women and children were brought aboard his ships to be sold as slaves. When his ships could hold no more, he killed the rest. They then continued looting up and down the coast of Italy.
UNITED STATES MILITARY BROKEN ARROW INCIDENTS
A Broken Arrow is an official United States Department of Defense term for accidents involving a nuclear weapon. Between 1950 to 1980, the Penagon admitted to 32 such incidents described as “involving a nuclear weapon, warhead or components that does not risk a nuclear war”. These events include unintentional detonation, theft, or loss of a nuclear weapon. Also included is major radioactive contamination. Of the 32 incidents, six nuclear weapons were lost and never retrieved.
There were many more incidents that were not classified as full-blown incidents. These are known as “Bent Spear” cases. Loss or theft are labeled “Empty Quiver” episodes and nuclear reactor power plant events are called “Faded Giants”.
There have been no actual nuclear detonation incidents. Declassified information, however, revealed hundreds of minor malfunctions involving safety issues. The government has not updated the number of nuclear weapon accidents since the 1980s.
CASTRO ESCAPES MULTIPLE ATTEMPTS TO ASSASSINATE HIM
Declassified U.S. documents revealed eight official sanctioned attempts were made by the C.I.A.to assassinate Fidel Castro in the 1960s. It is believed many more attempts were made and failed. Cuban intelligence made the startling claim that the number was actually 638. Their methods varied from poisoning food to sniper attacks to exploding cigars. Knowing Castro loved to scuba dive, they developed a plan for a diving suit to be infected with tuberculosis, along with planting a conch on the ocean floor that was wired to explode.
The C.I.A. often used the Mafia to carry out these plans due to their common interest: the United States wanted to get rid of Communism so close to home: the Mafia wanted to depose Castro because he had shut down the Mafia’s money-making casinos in Havana, costing them a fortune.
The C.I.A.’s predecessor, the Office of Strategic Services, first enlisted the help of the Mafia during the 1943 invasion of Sicily. They provided local intel to help secure the island. In 1948, the C.I.A. used the Mafia to suppress the Italian Communist Party during elections. So, there was a well-established alliance in place when the C.I.A. wanted Castro dead but did not want the United States to be held responsible. During peace time, the assassination of a world leader violated international law as well as the UN charter.
The plot to kill Castro ended in 1962, after the incredible number of failed attempts. There were growing concerns in the agency about their connection to the Mafia being exposed to the general public.
In 1974, the New York Times exposed the assassination efforts, which led to a Congressional hearing. The two main Mafia figures involved in the plot, Sam Giancana and Johnny Rosselli, were called to testify. They were both found dead before they could appear.
Fidel Castro was never assassinated, primarily due to his extremely effective security force. They used Soviet style espionage, surveillance and successfully infiltrated anti-Castro groups. The C.I.A. was unable to develop informants in Cuba due to Castro’s enormous popularity with his people in the 1960s. Mainly, the C.I.A.’s plans were too insanely complicated, to be effective. And of course, Castro was incredibly lucky.
LIES TRADERS TOLD TO CHARGE INSANE PRICES FOR CINNAMON
For many centuries, Arab and Phoenician spice traders bamboozled Europeans into believing they had to go to insane measures to harvest cinnamon. Between 2,000 to 1,000 BC, Greek and Roman trade routes through Egypt and the Red Sea brought Cinnamon into Europe. The Romans loved cinnamon but had no knowledge of where it came from or how it grew. This allowed spice traders to keep the prices ridiculously high and protect their trade monopoly. They invented a crazy legend to perpetuate their story. Trusting this story was true, the Romans were willing to pay up to a 500% markup because they believed traders risked their lives to harvest cinnamon.
Cinnamon comes from the dried inner bark of an evergreen tree native to Sri Lanka (Ceylon) and southern India where Roman ships did not travel. Traders spun the tale of the Cinnamon Bird Tale. This is the story of giant birds that gathered cinnamon from mysterious places to build their nests on unreachable bluffs. Traders claimed they had to kill oxen and position large pieces of meat on the ground under the nest. When the bird brought the large pieces of meat back to the nest, its weight would break the nest, and it would fall to the ground. The traders were then able to retrieve the cinnamon. They actually purchased the spice from Austronesian sailors in the Indian Ocean, transported it through sea lanes and then used desert caravans to bring it to Alexandia, Egypt. Venetian traders then distributed cinnamon throughout Europe.
In was not until 1505, when Portuguese explorer Lourenco de Almeida ventured into Sri Lanka (Ceylon), that the source of cinnamon was finally discovered, breaking the trade monopoly.
Have a thought about any of these? Drop me an email at Calliope@TheSatisfiedThinkoholic.com
