Venice Cafe Charges Tourist $50 for Two Coffees and Two Small Bottles of Water

A cafe in Venice, Italy has been slammed as a tourist trap after recently charging a man €43 ($50) for  two espressos and two small bottles of water.

Venice’s St. Marks Square is known for its notoriously pricey cafes and restaurants, but one such establishment has been getting a lot of negative attention online after a bill of €43 for two espressos and two small bottles of water went viral online. Juan Carlos Bustamente, a 62-year-old Chilean political consultant currently living in Italy, posted the receipt from Caffe Lavena on his Facebook page and it quickly went viral, with many commenters expressing their outrage about the insanely high prices.

Read More »

Long Island Family Thought They Had Bought a Pet Dog, Turns Out They Were Just Leasing It

A Long Island family is fighting for the right to keep their pet Golden Retriever Max, after a lending company threatened to have it repossessed unless they make a considerable final payment.

Danielle Cittadino and her family bought Max from the Shake-A-Paw pet store, in Lynbrook , New York, a couple of years ago. The adorable puppy cost $1,200, but the Cittadinos couldn’t afford to pay all of it upfront, so they were offered a financing option from a company called Wags Lending. They checked Danielle’s credit and after she was approved, the Baldwin woman had to fill out a bunch of paperwork, which she admits she didn’t go through thoroughly. She assumed that she was getting a loan, but in reality the contract specified that she wasn’t actually buying Max, but renting him until she paid all the required installments. Now the company is threatening to reposes the dog.

Read More »

70-Year-Old Pokemon Hunting Grandpa Is in a League of His Own

Pokemon GO may not be the phenomenon it was a couple of years ago, when virtually everyone was playing it, but the mobile game still has its share of die-hard fans. And 70-year-old Chen Sanyuan may just be the world’s most dedicated Pokemon GO player.

If you’ve checked out the Pokemon GO subreddit over the last couple of months, you may be familiar with the “hardcore pokemon hunter grandpa” from Taipei City, in Taiwan. Photos of him riding his customized pokemon-hunting bicycle have been doing the rounds on Reddit for a while, and every time a new one is posted, the bike appears to be getting crazier. Well, it’s not just appearances, Chen Sanyuan, the 70-year-old pokemon hunter is upgrading his bicycle every chance he gets. He currently has a whopping 9 smartphones – all connected to different Pokemon Go accounts – installed on the handlebar, as well as 9 power banks stored in a small basket, which allow him to hunt pokemons for around 20 hours at a time. Now that’s dedication!

Read More »

This Book About the History of Ferrari Costs More Than a Car

$30,000 may not buy you a new Ferrari, but it’s enough to cover the cost of this limited edition book on the history of the iconic sports car brand.

Before you freak out about the price, you should know that it includes a beautifully sculptured steel and chrome book stand, as well as an aluminum display case for the incredibly rare book. Together, the two artistic pieces created by designer Marc Newson are supposed to emulate the legendary Ferrari 12-cylinder engine. Titled simply ‘Ferrari’, the book itself is described as a “massive tome” and includes loads of photographs from the Ferrari archive that tell the history of the luxury Italian brand.

Read More »

Cult Leader Arrested After Allegedly Holding Followers Captive and Forcing Them to Take Part in Bizarre Rituals

The deranged leader of a South Korean cult was recently arrested for holding over 400 of her followers captive at a compound on Fiji Island and forcing them to take part in violent rituals under threat of incurring God’s punishment.

Shin Ok-ju, founder of the Grace Road Church, was detained along with three senior leaders of her cult in connection to allegations that she led hundreds of her followers to the island of Fiji by telling them that a “great famine” was imminent on the Korean peninsula. Once there, she reportedly confiscated their passports and refused to let them leave the 83-acre compound. Under the watchful eyes of handpicked guardians, worshippers were also forced to take part in brutal rituals that often left them bloodied.

Read More »

Woman Faked Pregnancy for 9 Months to Keep Boyfriend from Leaving Her. Then Things Got Really Creepy

Love is a wonderful and strong bond to have with someone, especially if you’re bringing new life into the world. But what happens when the connection is so strong, you’d do anything to keep it?

Rosa Castellanos Diaz, a young woman from the village of El Coyolar, Honduras, was expecting twins with her boyfriend, Melvin Mendoza. Or at least that’s what everyone thought, including Melvin, as Rosa looked pregnant and had even showed everyone an ultrasound scan. Last Friday, as he big day approached, the mother-to-be boarded a bus to the capital of Tegucigalpa, so she could give birth to her babies at Escuela Hospital. However, later that night, she called Melvin with heartbreaking news: one of the their twins had died while she was in labor, and the other one would have to stay at the hospital in order to receive special care.

Read More »

This 96-Year-Old Holocaust Survivor Is the Vocalist of a Death Metal Band

She may not look like one, but 96-year-old Inge Gingsberg is a rock star. She is the songwriter and lead vocalist of death metal group TritoneKings and is known as “Death-Metal Grandma”.

Inge has had quite a remarkable life. She grew up in Austria, but was forced to flee to Switzerland in the early days of World War 2, to avoid persecution. She spent years in a refugee camp, and after the war, she and her husband relocated to Hollywood, where they had to start their new life from scratch. Inge was able to begin a career in the music industry, composing songs for some of the most popular singers at the time, such as Nat King Cole, Doris Day, and Dean Martin. After a while, Inge started to get tired of Hollywood life, and decided to reinvent herself. Today, she is the vocalist of a death metal band.

Read More »

Blind warrior Sven – A Blind Professional Gamer Who Plays Street Fighter by Sound Alone

When Sven Van de Wege lost his eyesight to cancer at age six, he was afraid he’d never play video games again.

Today, “Blind Warrior Sven” is a competitive gamer who trounces some of the world’s best players at his favorite game “Street Fighter.” Watching Sven use his razor sharp gaming instincts to punish his opponents is nothing short of jaw-dropping.

But what will really blow your mind, is how Sven turned his handicap into an advantage that made him a celebrated professional gamer.

Read More »

Shady Company Sells “Brain Synchronization Caps” That Heal Both Health and Mystical Conditions

A Malaysian company has recently come under fire for selling simple cotton caps as miraculous healing accessories for up to 1,200 ringgit ($295) a piece.

Called “Brain Synchronization Caps” the controversial accessories are supposed to cure wearers of various health conditions, like insomnia, migraines and even cirrhosis, as well as treat mystical conditions like spells and curses. Johor-based company Sihulk is currently selling the caps for 1,200 ringgit ($295) or 1,000 ringgit ($246) for registered members. Considering that they are basically simple cotton caps with the Sihulk logo on them, many have accused the company of taking advantage of gullible people for a profit.

Read More »

The African Village Where Crocodiles and Humans Live Side by Side in Peace

In cultures all across the globe, animals are revered, and even worshipped. In Hinduism, for example, cows are valued for their gentle nature. But not every sacred animal is quite so harmless; crocodiles were worshipped in Ancient Egypt, as they were believed to be living representations of the god Sobek. You may be surprised to learn that the deification of crocodiles is far from ancient history.

In Burkina Faso, just 30 kilometers away from the capital of Ouagadougou, there is a small village of Bazoule, where its people — descendents of Mossis warriors — have chosen the Crocodylus suchus as its totem. Although Bazoule is located in a landlocked country, it does have its own pond, where 150 of these unusually docile creatures reside. Despite the fearsome reputation of crocodiles, the villagers have no problem living alongside them. In fact, the Mossi boldly approach the crocodiles to play; they even sit on and lie next to them.

Read More »

Ripped 81-Year-Old Bodybuilder Proves That You’re Never Too Old to Lift

Most octogenarians would consider themselves lucky to be able to not have a hip or back problem, but this 81-year-old Japanese bodybuilder is not only in perfect physical condition, he also looks better than a lot of men a quarter his age.

Toshisuke Kanazawa is living proof that you’re never too old to hit the gym and achieve the body you’ve always dreamed of. A multiple-time champion bodybuilder in his youth, Kanazawa retired at the age of 34 and really let himself go. He stopped exercising completely, started drinking, smoking and eating whatever he craved, when he craved it. He would often look at himself in the mirror and wondered if that was the body of a national bodybuilding champion, but it wasn’t until he was about to turn 50 that he got his motivation to get back on the horse and regain the ripped body of his younger years.

Read More »

They Call Him “Quadzilla”

Robert Förstemann’s massive thighs first broke the internet during the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, when a photo of them next to those of fellow Olympic cyclist Andre Greipel made the other guy’s quads look ordinary, despite being incredibly muscular compared to those of the average man. Since then, the man aptly nicknamed “Quadzilla” has become famous for his humongous quads.

Despite having won the World Championship in team sprint cycling in 2010 and getting numerous podium placements throughout his career, it’s safe to say that Robert Förstemann is known more for his massive thighs than his athletic achievements. It may not seem fair but that’s just how the world works. You may not care much about cycling, but when you see this guy’s quads, you just can’t ignore them. I mean, just look at the size of those things!

Read More »

Doraemon-Obsessed Family Turn Their House into a Shrine to the Popular Cartoon Character

As one of the most popular manga and anime characters of all time, Doraemon, the cuddly robotic cat, has millions of fans all around the world, but this family in Indonesia may just be his biggest fans. Just take a look at their house and you’ll see what I mean.

Doraemon is considered to be a children’s cartoon character, Reghina Karwur and her husband seem to have never outgrown their passion for the time-traveling robotic cat. Even though they now have two daughters of their own, the couple still dedicate much of their time to their obsession with Doraemon, and their house is the best example of that. It’s basically a shrine to the Japanese cultural icon, both on the inside and the outside.

Read More »

Billion Dollar Real Estate Company Ditches Physical Offices for Virtual Reality Campus

eXp Realty, one of the world’s fastest growing and most successful real estate companies, has become famous for not investing in any actual real-estate, opting instead for virtual reality offices that allow its agents and brokers to interact and socialize from anywhere around the globe.

Glenn Sanford, eXp Realty’s founder and CEO, founded the company a decade ago, soon after the real estate market collapse of 2007. He couldn’t afford to buy or rent office space, and figured that focusing on a system that allowed his team to work remotely would help the company avert disaster, should another real-estate crisis occur in the future. So eXp Realty relied on services like Google Docs and spreadsheets, project management solutions like Trello, and communications app Slack to help its workforce work together without actually sharing the same space. But three years ago, the company took this remote collaboration system to a whole new level, by building a campus complete with offices, meeting rooms, auditoriums, lounges and more, in virtual reality.

Read More »

Turkish Cafe Keeps Live Lion in Narrow Glass Box as Entertainment for Customers

A cafe in Istanbul, Turkey, has been accused of animal cruelty after a video of a young lion nervously pacing back and forth in a narrow glass box inside the venue went viral online.

The owner of Mevzoo, an animal cafe in Istanbul’s Beykoz district has been accused of animal cruelty and abuse after videos of Khaleesi, a one-year-old lion, pacing through a glass box built in the center of the cafe and chasing after a small girl were shared on social media. People were outraged that an endangered wild animal was confined to a space less than a meter wide, which was barely enough for it to turn around, and used as entertainment. And feedback kept getting worse after it was revealed that Mevzoo also uses parrots and other rare birds, caged crocodiles and horses to attract customers.

Read More »