TOP 10

10. Elsa Schiaparelli This Italian designer was known for her love of surrealistic art and she used this influence to great effect in her offbeat, irreverent designs. She is also known as the inventor of a bright pink shade known as “shocking pink”. Born in Rome in 1890 to an aristocratic mother and an intellectual father, Schiaparelli soon rebelled against the conventional life of the upper classes. Her desire for exploration and experimentation landed her in hot water as a teen, when she published a book of poems with decidedly sensual overtones. Her work deeply offended her parents, who punished her by placing her in a convent. Schiaparelli was so determined to escape from the nunnery that she initiated a hunger strike which resulted in her release. By her early twenties she had fled to London, where she could live under less scrutiny. Later, during a foray in New York, she joined with artist friends and they all made their way to Paris… In the City of Light, during the years from 1...

10.   Ilsa: She Wolf of the SS  Isn’t Just Nonsense If you haven’t seen  Ilsa: She Wolf of the SS , then you’re in luck, because the whole thing’s on  YouTube  for some reason. Keep in mind we’re not actually recommending it (it’s one of the least safe-for-work things that exist, what with the sex, torture and gratuitous Being-A-Nazi), but yeah, it’s all there. And so are its sequels. The titular  Ilsa  is a Nazi “scientist” bent on proving that women can take more punishment than men. Her methods include a lot of torture and nudity — it’s basically the 1970′s version of  Hostel , except even worse. Somehow. The Real Story And yet, it’s based on fact: Ilsa Koch and Irma Grese were female concentration camp guards, going down in history as committing the most mythically horrifying personal atrocities of the Third Reich, which we won’t list here.  Like the fictional Ilsa, both these scientist women used science as a shoddy excuse to cause peopl...

10. Cherry Blossom Tunnel, Germany Each spring, a peaceful street, located in the German city of Bonn, transforms into an enchanting cherry blossom tunnel. Photographer Marcel Bednarz captured this stunning sight of cherry blossoms in full bloom. He explained to me that there are actually two streets in Bonn where cherry trees are planted, but the one you see in the above picture is called Heerstraße. As you may know, the average cherry blossom lasts only between 7 and 10 days, depending on weather conditions. Similar tunnels can be found all over the world, so check them out if cherry blossoms are your thing: -   Kungsträdgården  cherry blossom in Stockholm, Sweden - Cherry Blossom Festival  in Macon, Georgia: over 600,000 people travel annually to Macon, to attend the 10-day long festival. Nearly 240,000 Yoshino cherry trees have been planted throughout that city in the last 30 years. “They’re everywhere, absolutely everywhere,” exclaimed Carolyn Crayton, the festi...