A Few Most Peculiar Places

Last Updated on April 5, 2024 by Travelationship

Have you ever visited a location and walked away thinking, “What was that?”. We recount four places that left us scratching our heads.

The Naturhistorisches (Natural History) Museum

The Naturhistorisches (Natural History) Museum in Bern, Switzerland, etched itself in our brains forever. We walked away from this museum with the makings of a few fantastical animal nightmares. Like any other Natural History Museum, it was full of historical and scientific information, including many fossils and animal exhibits. Educational-wise, we found the museum fascinating.

However, the antiquated mountings, borderline scary dioramas of prey animals, and dimmed lighting made us feel like we walked through a horror of offenses. Understand that the museum acquired many of its animal specimens years and years ago. The outdated and timeworn samples were vivid reminders of how far taxidermy has developed in the last century.

The Gallery of Bones consisted of 328 skeletons and skulls. It was a two-story room containing some pretty impressive displays. The weird part was the red-curtained spinning stage presenting several giant animal skeletons. It was a merry-go-round of death, with a blacked-out room behind it to highlight each skeleton, eerie as hell. We were the only ones in the gallery then, so a full room may offer a different experience.

While there, don’t miss the C’est la Vie (That’s Life) exhibit. It may have been my favorite and the craziest part of the museum. The exhibition was an Instagrammers haven with a mixture of highly peculiar modern, antique, animal, and human interactions. It felt as if we had walked into someone’s very off-center dream. I think the best description of it was weirdly fantastic.

The Icelandic Phallological Museum

It may be tiny, but The Icelandic Phallological Museum packs an experience you won’t soon forget. Located in Reykjavik, Iceland, the gallery was filled wall to wall with over 200 petrified, preserved, or molded penis samples. If you don’t think the stiffs on the wall are enough to motivate you, the collection also includes penis art, penis knick-knacks, and penis-related gifts. A considerable tip to increase your fun is to make a note to watch the other visitors as they tool around the joint. The conversations and reactions were just as entertaining.

Petra’s Stone Collection

While in East Iceland, we came across Petra’s Stone Collection in Stöðvarfjörður. We quickly skimmed a blurb somewhere about the museum and thought it had to do with Petra, the Greek Goddess (Prime example of not paying attention and misreading). To our surprise, the property was a vast collection of one woman, Petra Sveinsdóttir, a compilation of local rocks, minerals, animals, and seashells.

Petra vigorously started collecting at the age of 7 in 1929. Since then, she amassed one of the world’s largest private collections of geological specimens for display. We walked into this place thinking it would be a boring rock museum. We walked out thoroughly impressed with what we saw and utterly charmed with Petra’s life story.

Wall Drug Store

One of Midwest America’s biggest tourist traps, Wall Drug Store in Wall, South Dakota, has been roping road trippers since 1931. Anyone driving across South Dakota has probably been lured into downtown Wall by the strategically placed Wall Drug Store advertisements congruously along the I-90 highway.

Originally built to serve as a simple drug store, the establishment slowly became a Midwest traveler’s right of passage. The tiny town was designed to resemble an old west “Cowboys and Indians” scenario. Where else can one buy a 5-cent coffee, pick up free ice, ride a ginormous jackalope, and selfie with the presidents of Mt. Rushmore?

Travel Basics

Naturhistorisches (Natural History) Museum in Bern

Admission: Adults – 8 CHF; Students, senior citizens, groups of 10+: 6 CHF; Free 15 y/o and under; Free with Swiss Pass Card
Hours: Check their website for updated hours
Helvetiaplatz Stop via Public Transport
Limited parking available for cars
About a 10-minute walk from the Kirchenfeldbrücke Bridge

Icelandic Phallological Museum

Admission: 1,000 Icelandic kronur ($8 USD) – Cash only
Hours: Check their website for updated hours
Located next to Hlemmur bus station

Petra’s Stone Collection

Admission: ISK 1000 for 14 years and older
Hours: May 1st. – October 15th, 9.00-17.00
Address: Fjarðarbraut 21, 755 Stöðvarfjörður
Free parking available

Wall Drug

Admission: Free
Hours: Check their website for updated hours
Address: 510 Main Street, Wall, SD  57790

What was our weirdest travel adventure? Tell Us About it in the Comments.

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