A Historic Texas Building Is Now Home to a Shop Filled With Crystals, Candles, and Mystery
Tarot decks, cauldrons, and crystals now fill a Craftsman-style house designated as a local historic landmark. The shelves also hold candles, incense, and curious little gifts.
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This Missouri Bike Path Combines Riverfront Beauty With City Skyline Scenery
A bridge in downtown Kansas City is named after a town that technically no longer exists. It even has observation decks, so you can stand above the spot where the whole city got...
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This New Jersey Art Supply Thrift Store Is Filled With Creative Treasures You Won’t Find At Typical Craft Shops
Right on a busy boardwalk, steps from the sand, sits a thrift shop packed with donated paint, yarn, beads, frames, and vintage collage scraps.
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Shopping Malls Are Struggling Across America, But This Enormous New Jersey Landmark Still Draws Visitors From Miles Away
A mall with real snow, a ski slope, and a hill you can ride down in July. That sounds made up, but it isn't. The same building...
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99.9% Of Indiana’s Original Woods Are Gone, But This Protected Haven Holds One Of The Last Surviving Stands Of Virgin Forest
Some of the trees here were already growing before anyone had heard of Shakespeare. A few are over 400 years old, and they're still standing tall today.
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This Indiana Museum Has a Giant Collection of Classic Cars in an Unexpected Small City
A 33-foot GM Futurliner, one of only twelve ever built, parks inside an old car factory in a small Indiana city. It once toured America with the Parade of Progress.
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Why Schnitzel At This Missouri Restaurant Feels Like A Trip To Vienna Without The Flight
The schnitzel here comes with a lemon wrapped in a little cover, so juice lands on your plate instead of your eye. I love a kitchen that plans for squirts.
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This Texas Seafood Restaurant Was Once A 1940s Auto Shop And Now Serves Locally Farmed Oysters
The old transmission shop still has its original brick walls, but the tables now hold platters of Gulf seafood instead of car parts. The building dates to the 1940s, and its tall...
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This Unusual Oregon Thrift Store Is Filled With Craft Supplies That Deserve A Second Chance
A wall of yarn sorted into a full rainbow waits inside a store where almost everything was donated. Prices often land at a third to half of what you'd pay new. That's not a clearance...
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This Missouri Animal Attraction Lets You Book Encounters Year-Round, Including Feeding A Sloth By Hand
A baby sloth can nibble cucumber and apple slices straight from your fingers at one family-run zoo in Missouri. Yes, a real sloth, moving at full sloth speed toward your snack.
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Bruce Springsteen Met Clarence Clemons In The Building That Now Houses This New Jersey Pizza Restaurant
Bruce Springsteen first met Clarence Clemons inside a building where people now line up for wood-fired pizza. Yep, the room...
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This New Hampshire Living History Museum Lets Seniors Explore An 18th-Century Settlement For Just $12
Twelve dollars for a senior ticket to an 18th-century frontier settlement? That's an interesting opportunity to explore colonial history without spending a fortune on admission.
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This Maryland Japanese Grocery Store Is Packed With Seafood, Bento Boxes and Treats From Japan
Fresh fish, bento boxes, and Japanese skincare products all share space inside one compact Maryland grocery store. That is an unusual shopping list, but this family-run market...
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Crafters Will Find Endless Inspiration Inside This Oregon Fabric Store
You know that feeling when you walk into a place and suddenly every project you've ever dreamed of feels possible? That's exactly what happens the moment you step through these...
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This Short New Hampshire Trail Takes You Across A Bridge And Into A Gorge Filled With Rushing Waterfalls
A bridge overlooking rushing water and a rocky gorge sounds like a pretty impressive reward for a short hike. Even better, the surrounding trail makes it possible to enjoy the...
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This New Hampshire Italian Restaurant Makes Its Pasta Fresh Every Day, And You’ll Think You’ve Landed In Rome
Fresh pasta made from scratch every day? That's the kind of kitchen commitment that immediately gets my attention. Especially...
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America’s First Balloon Flight Ended In This Unassuming New Jersey Town
A French balloonist drifted over the Delaware River in 1793 with a letter from George Washington on board. He came down near a spot that now sits behind a Walmart, which is a sentence...
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A Pennsylvania Couple Turned an Old Ice Cream Shop Into a Country Cafe That Celebrated 30 Years
Before this Pennsylvania country cafe became known for homemade pies, hearty breakfasts, and generous plates of comfort food, its building housed an ice cream shop. Stan and Maggie...
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This Massive Oregon Vintage Mall Has More Than 200 Vendors And Enough Treasures To Keep You Busy For Hours
A train once rolled up to this building and unloaded meat straight into the basement through a chute. Today that same basement is a Y2K hangout full of nostalgic fun.
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This Luxurious New Hampshire Resort Is Hosting A $145 Thanksgiving Buffet Inside Its Grand Ballroom
A Thanksgiving buffet featuring roasted turkey, prime rib, seafood, and an entire spread of holiday desserts? That's quite a feast, especially when it's served inside the grand...
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This Maryland Coffee Shop Was Once a Gas Station and Now Serves Breakfast in a Surprisingly Cozy Setting
That cozy breakfast table sits inside a former Sinclair gas station. Before becoming a Maryland coffee shop, the building also housed the area's first video rental store.
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Hollywood’s First MGM Lion Is Buried At This Unexpected Roadside Spot In New Jersey
A lion statue sits on a rock by a quiet country road, and the real lion is buried right underneath it. Not just any lion, either. This...
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This Missouri Haunted Screampark Packs In 13 Attractions, Including A Terrifying Haunted Hayride
Thirteen haunted attractions sit side by side on one property, and a full trip through them can take more than an hour. That's not a typo.
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A Pennsylvania Woman Started Making Chicken Pies in Her Kitchen in 1997, and Her Family Turned Them Into a Regional Favorite
Families have been known to pull off Lincoln Highway with an empty cooler in the trunk and one goal in mind: bring home enough homemade chicken pies to last for weeks. What began...
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This Century-Old Minnesota Meat Market Still Does Things The Old-Fashioned Way
Some of the knives behind this butcher counter have been slicing meat for decades. Not years. Decades. That alone made me curious.
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12 New Jersey Attractions Where Adults End Up Having More Fun Than The Kids
One spot in this state lets you pilot real construction diggers, and grown-ups are allowed to climb into the seat too. I love that detail.
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Three Ohio Sisters Helped Their Mother Win a Restaurant Opportunity and Bring 50 Years of Local History Back to Life
Three sisters teamed up so their mom could put her own name on a restaurant sign. Even better, the building behind that sign has fed its neighborhood for roughly 50 years.
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A Fisherman Owned Oregon Food Cart Is Turning Local Seafood Into Sushi Rolls And Coastal Comfort Food
The albacore in your sushi roll here might have been caught by the guy who owns the place. I find that detail hard to shake....
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This Historic Virginia Tavern Is Serving Thanksgiving Dinner With Live Music And Colonial Charm
Roasted turkey, venison stew, and live tavern music are all part of a Thanksgiving celebration inspired by colonial dining traditions. That's quite a different atmosphere from...
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This Virginia Art Supply Thrift Store Turns Discarded Craft Materials Into Unexpected Creative Treasures
Somebody once donated a deer skull to an art supply store. Not a plastic one, either. It showed up alongside a rabbit pelt and...
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This 285-Year-Old New Jersey Mansion Is One Of The Last Clues To A Vanished River Town
A whole river port once bustled below this stone house, and now almost nothing of it remains. Warehouses, docks, and merchant homes simply vanished.
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Maryland Residents Are Challenging Data Center Plans Near Their Communities
A deal that promised school upgrades and a new recreation building was rejected after residents raised objections. Worth $110 million in proposed community benefits, it became...
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Hollywood Christmas Movie Props and a Giant Slide Fill Ohio’s 40,000-Square-Foot Holiday Wonderland
An enormous sleigh associated with the live-action Grinch movie is just one of the Christmas surprises waiting inside this Ohio attraction. Visitors also encounter a famous holiday...
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Some Of Missouri’s Most Tempting Steaks Are Hiding Inside This Historic Restaurant With Its Own Butcher Shop
This steakhouse started life in an 1898 brick building that once held a saloon and a brothel. Now it cuts and ages its own beef in an in-house butcher shop.
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Handmade Gifts and Holiday Foods Fill This Pennsylvania Christmas Market at a Former Steelmaking Site
Giant rusted blast furnaces tower over rows of twinkling holiday tents. That pairing sounds strange on paper, but it works beautifully.
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This Minnesota Pie Shop Turns Entire Slices Of Homemade Pie Into Milkshakes
A whole slice of homemade pie goes straight into the blender here. It meets ice cream and milk, and out comes a milkshake that tastes like dessert squared.
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This New Jersey Portuguese Restaurant Has A Dining Room Straight Out Of Europe
Two special tables in this dining room come with antique throne chairs and live piano music. That's a very fancy way to eat dinner on a weeknight.
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More Than 100 Gingerbread Creations Compete at This Pennsylvania Village, and Visitors Can See Them Free
More than 100 houses made of gingerbread go on display here every holiday season, and nobody charges a cent to see them. Bakers of all ages build them, and judges score every one.
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A Pennsylvania Pizza Shop Used 3,480 Pounds of Potatoes During Lent and Has a Replica Coal Mine Inside
Potatoes on pizza, served from a shop decorated like an old coal mine. That's a real thing, and it only shows up for part of the year.
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Thanksgiving Reservations At This Elegant Virginia Restaurant Are Already Sold Out For 2026
Thanksgiving dinner reservations disappeared before November even arrived. That's quite a statement about the popularity of a holiday meal served inside one of the state's most...
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This Virginia Pizzeria Was Named One Of The 50 Best Pizza Spots In America In 2026
Thirty-seventh place among America's best pizzerias is a pretty impressive achievement, especially when the competition includes celebrated restaurants from New York, California,...
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Pennsylvania Shoppers Can Find Brand-Name Baked Goods at Discount Prices at This Grocery Outlet
A grocery outlet where familiar bakery brands can cost far less than they do at a regular supermarket is already worth a second look. Add shelves of snacks, sweets, and everyday...
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The Massive Outlet Mall In Missouri That’s Too Good To Skip
A real fireplace crackles outside an outlet store every winter, right across from Michael Kors. I have to admit, that detail stopped me cold.
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One Thousand Apple Trees Given as a Wedding Gift in 1872 Started This Pennsylvania Family Farm
Most couples get dishes as a wedding present. One couple in 1872 got one thousand apple trees instead. I love that gift. It wasn't...
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The Giant Donut Holes At This Minnesota Bakery Are So Big They Almost Defeat The Purpose Of The Hole
The best-selling item at this donut shop is a donut hole, and some folks compare it to a tennis ball. That is not a typo. The smallest thing on most donut menus is the giant here.
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Walk Through 50 Restored Buildings At Oklahoma’s Pioneer Town Outside Duncan
I pulled off a quiet Oklahoma highway expecting a quick stretch break and maybe a postcard. Instead, I walked out two hours later smelling faintly of campfire smoke, a little damp...
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Ohio Families Line Up Before Sunrise for Holiday Pies at This Bakery That Makes 300 a Day
A bakery built almost entirely around pies, turning out roughly 300 of them on an ordinary day and even more during the holiday rush. Just crust, filling, and a whole lot of focus.
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This Creepy Year-Round Indiana Halloween Cafe Serves Up Spooky Potions in a Haunted Bookshop
A coffee shop where Halloween never ends just opened its doors, and the drinks come with a side of spooky. The shelves hold books, not just mugs.
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The Coffee Cake at This Historic Indiana Bakery Has Its Own Local-Famous Reputation
A coffee cake nicknamed the Alligator, finished with caramel icing, lives inside a tiny shop that opens at 5 a.m. That name alone stopped me cold.
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The Pork And Brisket At This Missouri BBQ Joint Spend Up To 14 Hours Over Hickory Before Reaching Your Plate
Every night, while most of us are asleep, pork and brisket sit in a hickory smoker for up to 14 hours. That's a full workday plus overtime, all for one plate of barbecue.
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An Ohio Family Restaurant Appeared in a Superman Movie, Then a Fire Forced It to Start Over After 43 Years
A neighborhood diner known for pierogi and stuffed cabbage ended up on the big screen in a Superman movie. Then a fire shut down its longtime home after 43 years of serving breakfast...
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A Mile-Long Holiday Light Spectacle Is Coming Back to Texas This November
Before the show begins, drivers switch off their headlights and tune their radios to the event's station. Then the road ahead lights up with millions of LEDs flashing to holiday...
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At This Oklahoma Train Museum, You Climb Aboard Old Trains For Free And Ride The Polar Express
Some of the best days in Oklahoma start with a wrong turn and a growling stomach. You pull off a quiet road expecting nothing, and suddenly you are staring at rows of giant old...
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Pennsylvania’s Million-Light Christmas Drive Offers a Chance to Win $1,000 by Finding a Reindeer’s Favorite Decorations
A million Christmas lights and a chance to win $1,000 make this Pennsylvania holiday tradition more than an ordinary drive through festive decorations. Somewhere along the route...
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This Old School Oregon Diner Still Looks Like The 1950s And Serves Generous Comfort Food
Model '57 Chevys and old Corvettes share wall space with vintage entertainer photos at this small-town Oregon diner. Then the cinnamon rolls show up, and they're big enough to...
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Chicken Fried Steaks Bigger Than The Plate Come Out Of These 5 Oklahoma Kitchens
The first time a waitress slid a chicken fried steak in front of me that hung over every edge of the plate, I laughed out loud. I had walked into a plain little cafe expecting...
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A Texas Restaurant Where the Entire Menu Is Gluten-Free and Dairy-Free
A sweet potato chocolate brownie topped with avocado mousse and berries is on the dessert menu at this Texas restaurant. And every dish skips both gluten and dairy.
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Lost Gold Rush Fever Built Then Emptied This Oklahoma Ghost Town In The Wichitas
Some of the best stories in Oklahoma hide behind a crooked porch and a gravel lot you almost drive past. I went looking for leftover traces of a gold rush in the granite hills...
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Tucked Inside Another Venue, This Oklahoma Puerto Rican Kitchen Tastes Like Home, And The Pernil Shows Why
I almost walked right past it, a tiny counter inside a bigger building, with a hand-lettered menu and a smell that stopped me cold. Garlic, slow-roasted pork, and something sweet...
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