It’s been five years since the pandemic shutdown. So often, conversations about that time revolve around places we’ve lost. But for this episode, Atlas Obscura staffers share the places they gained during the pandemic. 

Plus: We want to hear from you. Tell us about the places that you gained or discovered during the pandemic. How did you discover this place? Why is it important to you? What’s it like visiting that place now vs. then? Give us a call at 315-992-7902 and leave a message telling us your name and story. Or record a voice memo and email it to us at [email protected]. 

Dylan sits down with podcaster Ashley Ray, who has more than a soft spot for her Midwest hometown. Hear why she thinks it may just be the best kept secret, despite its bad reputation. 
 

Check out Ashley’s podcast all about TV and culture. 
 

All week, we’re collaborating with the great podcast Terrestrials to tell stories about people, places, and animals with bad reputations – and the surprising truths behind them.

As a child, Lulu Miller had a beloved dog. But one day, the dog disappeared – and in all likelihood, it was probably eaten by coyotes. Since then, Lulu has been strangely fascinated by these crepuscular creatures. Now, she heads to Graceland Cemetery in Chicago at the crack of dawn – to marvel at the urban coyotes that make the cemetery their home, and to grapple with their longstanding bad reputations.
 

Plus: You can check out the coyote photos of Robert Loerzel (Lulu’s coyote guide) on his Instagram. 
 

All week, we’re collaborating with the great podcast Terrestrials to tell stories about people, places, and animals with bad reputations – and the surprising truths behind them.

Toronto is home to a massive underground mall called the PATH, a labyrinth of hallways with shops, banks, and no fewer than nine Tim Hortons. At 30 kilometers long, it’s the largest underground shopping complex in the world. It's also famously dull. What wonder can be found in a dreary, underground mall? Reporter Elah Feder takes this as a challenge and descends into the PATH to see if she can wring an ounce of wonder from this godforsaken place. Along the way, she ponders the nature of boredom – and confronts some existential questions.
 

All week, we’re collaborating with the great podcast Terrestrials to tell stories about people, places, and animals with bad reputations – and the surprising truths behind them.

Dylan has complicated feelings about rats. On one hand, they’re amazingly resourceful creatures. On the other, they caused the bubonic plague (and other harmful situations). So when Terrestrials producer and composer Alan Goffinski went on a rat reporting spree Dylan knew just who he had to talk to in order to come to terms with his feelings about the rodents. From a subterranean rat city underneath NYC to a “rat hotline,” Alan and Dylan journey down the rabbit hole – er, rat hole. Will Dylan come down pro-rat or anti-rat? Let the scorekeeping begin!

Want more rats? Listen to Alan’s episode all about these fascinating creatures. 

All week, we’re collaborating with the great podcast Terrestrials to tell stories about people, places, and animals with bad reputations – and the surprising truths behind them.

From laundromats to Sacramento, listeners go to bat for places with bad reputations. 

All week, we’re collaborating with the great podcast Terrestrials to tell stories about people, places, and animals with bad reputations – and the surprising truths behind them.

Niles, Illinois is home to an exact replica of Italy’s leaning tower of Pisa - only it’s half the size of the original structure.

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/leaning-tower-niles

Adventurer Elise Wortley retraces the footsteps of historic female explorers – and she does it all with no modern gear, no shortcuts, and no guarantees that it is going to work out.

Learn more about Elise’s trip to the Valley of the Assassins.

Producer Alexa Lim travels in search of the Kolache Triangle. Along the way, she visits some of the state’s Czech communities, and hears how the kolache became the gem of the Texas roadside snack.

Two small stories about two cold nights in different parts of the world. 11:45 p.m. in Oulu was written by Anne Korkeakivi, and 2:30 a.m. in McMurdo Station was written by Elizabeth Endicott. Both essays were edited by Tusshara Nalakumar Srilatha and originally appeared in Off Assignment. Elizabeth Endicott is a writer based in Denver, and Anne Korkeakivi is the author of the novels Shining Sea and An Unexpected Guest.