Despite its neutrality, Switzerland has more than 15,000 secret underground military installations.
Toy reproductions of ants are often blue-tinted because the real ones are bluish in color when observed under a microscope.
In the 1950s, the city of Melbourne established the Moomba Festival, naming it after what they thought was the aborigine word for “Let’s get together and have a good time.” Years later, someone realized “moom” means butt and “ba” means up or at. So roughly translated, moomba means “up yours.”
Need domestic help, looking for roast duck, trying to get home delivery of products, or trying to book airplane reservations in Beijing? No problem. Just dial 96156, the newly launched “official concierge” hotline. It’s a free local call and service.
Exotic-novel author James Michener preferred cafeterias (especially Marimont in Austin) to fancy, exotic restaurants.
This article appears in December 20 • 2002.