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Nagi Gumba
Top floor of castle.
Kifune Castle
 The front of Asian Garden Mall.
Asian Garden Mall
The cable car is one of two in Europe that crosses open ocean.
Dursey Island Cable Car
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A slice of cake is the perfect coda to a meal at Piatto Romano.
Piatto Romano
Crunchy and supremely satisfying, suppli might be the ultimate street food snack.
Supplizio
The pedigreed pistachios here are from Bronte.
Gelateria dei Gracchi
This tiny hole-in-the-wall serves one of the world’s most magnificent sandwiches.
Er Buchetto
Seafood features prominently on the menu.
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View of Santa Monica Beach and Los Angeles in afternoon sun. Aerial view from above the pacific ocean water.
Why Did Celebrity Preacher Aimee Semple McPherson Mysteriously Disappear?
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The glass-ceilinged atrium of the Bradbury Building was inspired by Edward Bellamy’s utopian literature.
The Bradbury Building Featured in ‘Blade Runner’ Was Inspired by a 19th-Century Utopian Novel
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Berza gitana is one of the exemplary dishes of Gitano cuisine.
How Gitano Cuisine Found a Home in Andalusia
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Greenland dogs—crucial to the sledge patrol’s transport and defense—pull a patrolman’s sled.
How Greenland’s Dog-Sled Patrol Became Unsung Heroes of World War II
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All the United States Illinois Mattoon

The Atlas Obscura Guide To Mattoon

3 Cool, Hidden, and Unusual Things to Do in Mattoon, Illinois

Updated July 20, 2021

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Unusual Attractions in Mattoon

Illinois’ Original Burger King from streetside

Mattoon, Illinois

Illinois’ Original Burger King

The multinational Burger King chain is banned from operating within 20 miles of a family restaurant filed under the same name.
View of the well from the west

Mattoon, Illinois

Blalack & Walter Well No. 1

This small-town park in southern Illinois has a 1,000,000-gallon swimming pool and a 100,000-barrel oil well.

Mattoon, Illinois

Grave of Arland D. Williams, Jr.

The final resting place of the hero of Air Florida Flight 90 known as "the man in the water."
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Permanently Closed
The world’s fastest pop machine.

Lerna, Illinois

World's Fastest Pop Machine

The 40-year-old machine serves soda quicker than you can catch it for a mere 75 cents a pop.
6 miles from Mattoon
Two-Story Outhouse

Gays, Illinois

Two-Story Outhouse

This historic lavatory leftover features two levels of defecation stations completely without context.
6 miles from Mattoon
Permanently Closed
Buggy rides at Rockome Gardens (Flickr/Пероша)

Arcola, Illinois

Rockome Gardens - An Amish Themepark

You were once able to challenge a chicken to tic-tac-toe at this park, which is now converted into the Aikman Wildlife Adventure.
13 miles from Mattoon
Permanently Closed
Lincoln is visible from far away.

Ashmore, Illinois

World's Tallest Lincoln Statue

This abandoned Abraham Lincoln statue has also earned the honorary of "World's Ugliest."
14 miles from Mattoon

Cool Places to Eat & Drink in Mattoon

Illinois’ Original Burger King from streetside

Mattoon, Illinois

Illinois’ Original Burger King

The multinational Burger King chain is banned from operating within 20 miles of a family restaurant filed under the same name.
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    has been to Illinois’ Original Burger King

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