52 Facts about Cities - mental_floss List Show Ep. 338

[@dap489]

in Bogotá we have the "Ciclovía". Every sunday morning, the main streets and rodes are used as parks, where people ride their bikes, skate, jog, etc. No cars are allowed.

[@SamInTheWilderness]

I like how when John says "...and this is my salon" he looks at it like he forgot what it looked like

[@RedCoyote]

The bit about Sao Paulo's traffic is so true. It was insane visiting my brother there when I come from a simple southern American city.

[@GambitArkana]

its spelled Willis but its pronounced sears.

[@heatherforrest3862]

This comment is great! :)

[@darkangel21892]

Agreed!

[@GambitArkana]

Just like u s cellular will still be new comiskey park.

[@ho77iday]

+Gambit Arkana It's spelled COMMENT but pronounced You Just Won The Internet

[@GambitArkana]

+Jay Pretli maybe cause I'm tired but not sure that's a good reply or bad.

[@CaptainMcSmoky]

The Vatican City is so small it has around 2 Popes per Square Km.

[@GreRe9]

+CaptainMcSmoky it the monent even around 4 Popes/km^2

[@notionsofdragonsfire]

+CaptainMcSmoky Including all the ones buried in St. Peter's Basillica?

[@ROCIOlogy]

that's so funny!!

[@BubbaSmurft]

+Kelley L. O'Neill It's .6 of a square kilometer in area.

[@2nd3rd1st]

+CaptainMcSmoky And did you know that Vatican City also has the most sex offenders per capita in the world?

[@askhollib]

My ears itched at the sound of Willis Tower. I know not of any Willis Tower. Viva la Sears Tower!

[@vitamindubya]

+Holli B. Coorporate loyalty!

[@jarl5817]

+Holli B. YES!

[@matthewp3859]

Loyal Chicagoans Unite!

[@joelruggaber8371]

Yes! And The Sox still play at Comisky, dammit!

[@GenaTrius]

Mexico City was not build on a lake. Tenochtitlan was built on a lake. Mexico City was built on Tenochtitlan. This is a tragedy.

[@MrLesonfireforGod]

+Gena Trius Considering that the Aztecs had a religion based on human sacrifice and ritual cannibalism, we should only feel so much for them. Yes Cortez may not have been a very good person as well, but anything is better than what was there before the Spanish came and took over. And that's not racism.

[@GenaTrius]

Les Miller The captured enemies of the Aztecs died on the altar; the enemies of the Spanish died on the battlefield or in the torture chamber. The Aztecs practiced ritual cannibalism; Europeans following the Paraclesian school of medicine practiced medical cannibalism. There are also records of Spaniards using the fat from Native bodies to dress their wounds. At best, it's a matter of "Here comes the new boss, same as the old boss." Source: Beth A. Conklin's "Consuming Grief."

[@ilikefriedwaffles96]

+Gena Trius Mexico City was built on Tenochtitlan, and also built around it too, and you literally just said that it was built on lake

[@hannesproductions4302]

A lake is a lake

[@sophiaruizuvalle2523]

yes, it was built on a lake and it does sink, google "el angel de reforma" of 2015 and of 1960 its freakig scary

[@TheOrangeType]

"You're all welcome into our bar! Except you. God loves you, but you're wearing trainers."

[@thesnowedone]

As an Australian I have to disagree - we do not have any radioactive kangaroos... they were all eaten by the dropbears.

[@danlee1739]

Today I begin my collection of plush toys preserved in specimen jars! Thankyou Hank! I mean Jon! You rule. And the salon is lovely lol.

[@christine1902]

In 1654 my lovely hometown of Delft, The Netherlands, there was a huge explosion because of the gunpowder storage. That building used to be in the city center. When Delft rebuild they used a cannon to shoot a projectile as far as possible. Where the projectile landed they built the new gunpowder storage facility. Also: ion 1584 Willem van Oranje was killed in our city.

[@mrAppletreer]

As we say in my home town "good morning and in case I don't see you good afternoon, good evening, and good night!"

[@SaturnCanuck]

Yes. Toronto is THE BEST PLACE ON EARTH! Does it show I live there?

[@BubbaSmurft]

I was born there and live there now and I've never seen a Corgi on the Beach and I walk it almost daily. btw, Vancouver is the best place on earth.

[@SaturnCanuck]

Yes, you are correct. Toronto and Vancouver are the best places on Earth (in that order).

[@isaiahhaddock8803]

No Provo Utah is the best place on earth. Bar none.

[@Rlyeh_The_Dead]

+Isaiah Haddock Dude provo is just a constant gridlock of byu students going to and from school in old neighborhoods where any place outside of 'byu bounderies' is super ghetto and gross... but anyways, go cougs!

[@SaturnCanuck]

I'm sorry. What are you saying? Your English is so bad.

[@cheyennewoodnymphweaver8261]

I love this show!!!! i grew up in a mildly famous city, Bethlehem Pennsylvania. we have the largest steel manufacturer of its time. it's been shut down since the 60s. and was abandoned until six years ago now becoming a sands casino. the steel from Bethlehem Steel Works built the golden gate bridge, among other large structures around the world. it was the main distributors for steel in its time. and employed majority of the area. many people died working there, and the people still living today, no longer receive pensions. I think it would be amazing if I did a special on my home town. the Christmas City, home to music fest, and the sun inn. where George Washington spent much of his time. thanks sonkuch for reading my comment. your show brings me much joy, entertainment and laughter. and I always remember to keep it awesome. Peace and love. Toni.

[@jasminejack1532]

I live in a town called Basingstoke in England, about 45 minutes away from London, a nickname for us is Doughnut city, because of how many roundabouts we have, and part of our "history" is we somehow managed to bury a woman alive ....twice.

[@vitekola]

3:01 there's a picture of Prague not Berlin haha. Greetings from Prague!

[@alannar.8701]

+Víťa Bilanyuk Prague is absolutely gorgeous! It's the number 1 place I want to go when I'm older. :)

[@klopferator]

+Víťa Bilanyuk And I thought: "This looks like the picture they used for Prague?" Prague is really beautiful though. Greetings from Berlin!

[@vickydavide4907]

They did the same with Miami

[@radekjenik2957]

+Víťa Bilanyuk Where is this place? I live in Prague and I can´t figure it out.

[@vitekola]

+Radek Jeník in the back is Hradčany and Prague castle. The picture is probably taken from Žižkov, but not completely sure

[@El.goodwell]

Yeeeeah! Toronto IS the best place on Earth!

[@abdullahassad3654]

Lol racist af

[@TheCoBBus]

Suomi mainittu! Torille siis !

[@GideonvanderMerwe]

@Mental Floss , So awesome to see my city (Pretoria, South Africa). Awesome vid !

[@D3C0Y]

I live in Toronto and had no idea about the Corgi's. I must move now.

[@kevinwells9751]

Another fact about Istanbul: Istanbul was Constantinople Now it's Istanbul, not Constantinople Been a long time gone, Constantinople Why did Constantinople get the works? That's nobody's business but the Turks And a related fact about New York: Even old New York was once New Amsterdam Why they changed it I can't say People just liked it better that way

[@lawrencecalablaster568]

Amsterdam & its bicyclic abundance are extraordinary!!!

[@Crankthatsnes]

Willis Tower? What's the Willis Tower?

[@jayrodriguez4202]

lol people from chicago get it

[@AnnaWebb37]

It's the Sears tower

[@aalphagamingaa4853]

Haha

[@colin_throws]

In Seattle, there are neighborhoods called Magnolia and Madrona, each named after the respective tree that was found in each neighborhood. Upon closer inspection, they found that Magnolia actually had madrona trees and Madrona had magnolia trees

[@KathyTrithardt]

Um, why are the graphics for Moscow and Miami the same?

[@themotherbrassica]

I'm not even from Chicago, but the name"Willis Tower" makes me cringe.

[@ExGavalonnj]

thank you for including Philly!

[@daveski4496]

Just love your blue flame.

[@davegreenlaw5654]

Another couple of reasons why Toronto is so awesome. America's Sweetheart, Mary Pickford (born Gladys Louise Smith, baptized Gladys Marie Smith) was born on University Ave. in Toronto, Canada - now the site of the world-famous Hospital for Sick Children. The family home was demolished in 1943, and the proceeds from the sale were used to build a bungalow in the then Township of East York (later Burough as part of Metropolitan Toronto 1953, and then amalgamated into the City of Toronto in 1999). The bungalow - a few blocks from where I once lived - was first prize in a draw to raise funds for various wartime charities, and it is said that Pickford actually signed the front door. Speaking of East York, Keifer Sutherland, before moving to LA to pursue an acting career - and eventually landed the role of president on Designated Survivor - lived in East York along with his mother and twin sister. (Side note, I actually attended school with them in 1979.) His maternal grandfather was Tommy Douglas, one of the first elected members of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF), later the New Democratic Party (NDP) and was the first leader of the new party in 1961. As leader of the CCF in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan, Douglas was elected Premier of that province, and helped bring in the first ever single-payer universal health care system on the continent...which eventually spread across the country to what it is today.

[@smallmac11]

Thanks for fixing Philly's picture!

[@Talesonelves]

I actually grew up on a farm and was driven to one of any three of the nearest towns so I don't actually have a home-town-home-town per say. However, one of those three towns was Audubon, Iowa which has the world's largest cement bull , and he is anatomically correct, I might add. By growing up so close by Albert's uniqueness was never fully appreciated, but I'm always happy to share this roadside attraction with others. :) Also a native-known-fact, just mentioned in the article, is true. Albert's larger than life testicles were painted different colors (blue, sliver, green, you name it) by the graduating high school class (though in the article they mention rival football teams which could also be true - I didn't actually attend school in Audubon). It was a yearly "tradition" which was tolerated by the locals who would eventually paint Albert's dangly-bits back to a more realistic color. However, sometime in the late 1990's (though I'd have to double check for accuracy) Albert got a complete paint job from horn to tail and it everyone was asked to please respect the bovine's nads. Which have remained a shade of realistic pink till this day. Albert the Bull also celebrated his 50th birthday recently and he wore a party hat atop his head for the entire summer. More details on Albert can be found here: www.roadsideamerica.com/story/11321

[@2nd3rd1st]

0:37 Johannesburg has nothing on Zion though. That city has been entirely eradicated and rebuild 5 times, until Neo brokered the truce.

[@user-xx5nk1wv1e]

Woohoo, Toronto!

[@btetschner]

What is John Green's hometown? "Don't Forget to be awesome" is a great phrase!

[@hummingstone7014]

I live about 45 min by car from Stockholm and i had no idea that it is built on 14 islands. You learn something new every day I guess....

[@jarl5817]

LOL One fact from this video really intrigued me and I wanted to look it up, but the video was so good I finished watching it and forgot which one!

[@s_mores]

they are more traffic cone than people in Montreal.

[@PIZZLEdeTWIZZLE]

+Simon Morin AH ! This is probably true :D

[@Goabnb94]

Would say the same for Christchurch, NZ at the moment (earthquake repairs)

[@joettaxoxo]

There are more cheesesteaks than people in Philadelphia

[@ethanchirdon9375]

Pittsburgh is home to one of the oldest wooden coasters, in Kennywood. The roller coaster is called the Jackrabbit.

[@danlee1739]

Hello Kitty preserved in a specimen jar. That is genius. I want one.

[@knightwolv69]

Miracle Whip was invented in Salem, Illinois, at Max Crosset's Cafe, where it was called "Max Crossett's X-tra Fine Salad Dressing". Crosset sold it to Kraft Foods in 1931 for $300.

[@NormalMadwoman]

The reason the "five Big Streets" in Tianjin has so many styles of architecture is because Tianjin was a trading port and a concession city where different nations had set up areas of control. John, if you ever come to Tianjin, I'll show you around Wu Da Dao.

[@thejamesthird]

My town, Hastings and St. Leonards-on-sea is the birthplace of television, the resting place of alistar Crowley and the birthplace of modern England due to a battle in 1066

[@Jemini4228]

Which was incidentally the last time the country was successfully invaded :)

[@realspacemodels]

My home town of Tallahassee Florida was founded when East Florida and West Florida merged. The location was half way between the two previous Capitol cities Pensacola and St. Augustine. It is in the middle of nowhere.

[@CeNedra2917]

The town of Centereach NY was named for being precisely located in the middle of Long Island. The idea was that if you had arms long enough and were standing in Centereach you could reach out and touch the ends of the island (both north to south and east to west) :)

[@davecairns]

My favourite point of trivia about Melbourne, Australia (best. city. ever.) is that it was originally going to be called 'Batmania'

[@faheemwyne5098]

My city made today's world. Manchester - where the industrial revolution started & where the 1st electronic computer to store & run a program was invented (it still works to this day)

[@simplequestions95]

The first mechanically sliced bread was sold in my hometown:)

[@annacohen4469]

Madison, WI used to have the city motto of "77 square miles surrounded by reality"

[@peterjones701]

Here in Salt Lake City , Utah: the first artificial heart was invented. Also our winter slogan of "Greatest Snow On Earth" isn't just a gimmick; when the precipitation from the Pacific ocean runs out of moisture somewhere between the west coast and western Utah, the lake-effect kicks in. The moisture picked up isn't from just any lake, it comes from the Great Salt Lake. This shallow lake is densely packed with Sodium Chloride. This heavy amount of salt being picked up in the lake's evaporating water create a very dry, dense snow. This dry snow creates friction underneath skis or snowboards, which melts a thin layer of the snow. So in a way we don't ski, we surf. Who says you can't surf in Utah?!

[@faeriesmak]

My home town of Sheboygan, WI hosts the Dairyland Surf Classic which is the largest lake surfing competition in the world. I have watched it and there is a reason that lake surfing has not caught on.

[@kittyo4832]

"Give your head a shake!" is a common expression used in Ireland when someone is being unreasonable. It can be used interchangeably with "catch yourself on!"

[@sabssc]

SO EXCITED WHEN HE MENTIONED SINGAPORE!! :D though i have not heard of that fact before~ hahaha

[@TheChrizzy]

Copenhagen doesn't mean "Merchant Harbor"... In Danish it's "København" which roughly translates into "Buy a harbor" ;)

[@Bongorock333]

+TheChrizzy www.middelalderinfo.dk/bynavne.php

[@taylornitz1016]

My hometown of Tama, Iowa is literally connected to the town of Toledo, Iowa. Some of the older residents of Tama refuse to go through Toledo and vice versa as they hold on to a long standing town rivalry. Together they have a population of less than 5,000. There is also a Meskwaki Indian Settlement just outside of town.

[@Glacier_Nester]

new liberty, my hometown, used to be called liberty, until they moved the town to be on the railroad route!

[@Mayhemerz]

It was St Stephen's Tower housing Big Ben, but now it's Elizabeth Tower after being renamed for the Queen following the Diamond Jubilee. The other tower on the Houses of Parliament (yes, there is another one that no one mentions) is called Victoria Tower.

[@TallTactical]

U used the same pic for both miami and moscow😂

[@MrLesonfireforGod]

Calgary, Canada is a wonderful place to live. We get warm winter winds coming down over the rocky mountains called "chinooks" where the temperature can go up by 20 or 30 degrees overnight.

[@CarolineeHammer]

Oslo, Norway is nicknamed "The Tiger State", and the 1000 year anniversary was celebrated by the creation of numerous tiger statues, which were placed by the city hall. One statue remains placed in Oslo today by the central train station.

[@Kuj0Jotar0]

what is a geico?

[@joshuacreel3000]

American insurance company

[@bakomusha]

Hemet California is home to the longest running outdoor play, Ramona(that plays at the Ramona Bowl ) Its been playing annually since 1923.

[@crazycatz955]

John used the word "defenestrate". I am now happy panda.

[@YangKoeteVODs]

"Defenestration"=To be thrown out a window.

[@EdwardianNerdfighter]

Our history book in school had this to say about the defenstrations in Prague: To the Bohemians, throwing people out of windows was a traditional way of showing contempt.

[@Jemini4228]

I would say that it is a pretty clear sign you don't particularly like someone, yes XD

[@WILLIAMHWHITTLE]

In Brewton Alabama it is illegal to drive a motor boat down the street because once in the early 1900s there was a flood and the wake made by motorboats caused several shop windows to break.

[@David-ms7fd]

Niagara on the Lake is considered the most haunted place in Canada, and a ghost named Irving haunts the Nearby Fort George

[@displacerkatsidhe]

I grew up in Harriman NY which, according to local legend, is where Velveeta cheese was invented. The town still has a cheese festival every year, and there used to be an official "prime minister of cheese" position in the town government.

[@ackid59]

My hometown of Margate, NJ has a mascot by the name of Lucy The Elephant. Not only is she on the National Register of Historic places, she is also a movie star. She is shown in the postcards of odd buildings in the opening credits of the original 'National Lampoon's Vacation'.

[@mandiemoore3272]

I think this kind of fits this scheme I heard that the Golden Gate Bridge is painted constantly like it's a start at one end and by the time they get all the way to the other end it's time to start at the beginning again

[@jefferyjoslin4549]

Hilo Hawaii gets a lot of rainfall - about 130 inches a year, and that happening over about 275 days. That works out to roughly 2 out of every 3 days being rainy. and people think Seattle is gets a lot...

[@btetschner]

Great video too btw

[@quicksilver-ace3710]

In my hometown of Houston, the airport received backlash due to the long periods of time it took your bags to get to you. As a response, the airport moved the baggage claim area further back, the amount of complaints dropped severely after that.

[@tomryan914]

I have the same color (colour) 'Polo' brand shirt. Yay!

[@michelfug]

Utrecht in the Netherlands has a medieval church that was (partly) destroyed by a tornado back in 1672, separating the tower from the rest of the building. The remains are still used, as a church.

[@revosoldier4995]

I don't care how long it has been, it will always be the Sears Tower to me.

[@NekoiNemo]

In #33 Miami kinda looks like Russian city. Misplaced image?

[@room120times]

In my hometown of London there is this random block of limestone that has been a widely known landmark of London since at least the 1100s but possibly stretching back to Roman times. We have no idea what the stone was originally was used for, if it was part of a larger structure or even when it was put on Cannon Street in London. It can be seen on Medieval maps of the city and has been written about by everyone from Geoffrey Chaucer to Nathaniel Hawthorne. It's currently at the Museum of London since the building it is usually housed in was demolished. TL;DR in one of the major roads of London there's a random block of limestone that has been a major landmark and very widely written about since the 12th century and nobody knows why.

[@abbyxoxo48]

why did Constantinople get the works?

[@hart-of-gold]

That's nobody's business but the Turks.

[@cclairebear2608]

We had a cat named Constantinople

[@theatom321]

Small Town facts! Jeromesville Ohio has the worlds largest Sycamore tree!

[@xiaoxiao01]

in germany we have women parking spots aswell, they are usually in parkades at the exit so they can feel save when entering/exiting during nighttime :)

[@AnyBodyWannaPeanut]

PuppyCat in your salon?! sweet.

[@HikaruKatayamma]

As an extension to your mention of Philadelphia, all of those institutions where founded directly or via the influence of Benjamin Franklin. The man was AWESOME! (read his autobiography!)

[@ntyh92]

8:48 ，"Thanks for watching menopause video..."

[@zekelyness]

My home town hosts the largest Coast Guard Festival in the United States. Locals often try to take the week off and spend prior weeks storing food so they don't have to sit through the traffic. On the north end of town there is only one bridge in and with boat traffic and car traffic there can be up to an hour delay in a town it only takes 15 minutes to drive through.

[@chibiprussia5574]

I love Seattle

[@littlehouseontheprepostero8457]

'2 Broke Girls'? I expect better from you, John Green.

[@mahinalam]

+littlehouseonthepreposterous I hope you understand sarcasm.

[@littlehouseontheprepostero8457]

mahin alam I do, but you never know with John.

[@vitamindubya]

You like different shows that me. That bothers me

[@AquariusRisen]

+vitamindubya I'm not typically one to jump on the bandwagon, but that show is objectively terrible. In short, if you enjoy that show, your taste is bad and you should feel bad!

[@vitamindubya]

lol

[@abomesai18]

About 70 years ago, my hometown was one of the biggest and most important in the area. Now, a lot of people I meet from other places don't even know it exists.

[@JovialDescent]

Is it Sioux City?

[@abomesai18]

+Whyhey Corp no

[@jrhattenstein]

My home town is Chickasaw, AL. Located a few miles north of Mobile, AL. Chickasaw has "sidewalk streets" in which houses face a shared "pedestrian only" sidewalk, with alleyways in the back for vehicular traffic. First Street is one of such sidewalk streets. Chickasaw was also once home to the Chickasaw Shipbuilding and Car Co., which, during WWI, built and launched 14 concrete ships.

[@lissfirefly9517]

Actually, Fact, Supernatural is the best show. It has action, drama, mystery, horror, and comedy.

[@tylerrissell9837]

It actually rains more in NYC then in Seattle but it's known as the rainy city because it has more consecutive days of rain.

[@Damnhippies546]

Why the reupload?

[@micahsymons28]

4:00 "200 AD BCE"

[@tigerfanfrv]

Erie PA is called Pennsylvania's "Flagship City" because it was the home port for Oliver Hazard Perry during the war of 1812

[@gunnargolf]

Jón Gnarr said that he would only work with politicians who had watched The Wire, not that they had to think it was the best show ever.

[@jordanwolfson8378]

X number of facts about the american northwest (WA, OR, ID, etc) would be awesome!

[@agentcallisto]

Years ago in my hometown of Riverton, Utah, residents began to complain about the unpalatable water. An investigation turned up a dead raccoon in the city water tank and a school mascot was born! Riverton Elementary School, and the school song goes "We are Riverton elementary We're raccoons, it's no surprise, there's a mask about our eyes We scamper into school, bright-eyed and ring-tailed are we, our minds are filled with curiosity We dig into reading, writing, history, math, and science too We devour art and music, oh we're clever through and through For we are Riverton elementary, we're raccoons (sound effect) we're raccoons! YEAH!"

[@headrockbeats]

Thanks to you for watching menopause videos.

[@Somefox]

Ottawa has the largest skating rink in the world every year during the winter (By Area, the Assiniboine river in Manitoba is the Longest but is only 2-3 meters wide in places) and some local residents even use it to skate to work during the winter..

[@Aldo_raines]

Weatherford, Texas is the cutting horse capital of the world. A cutting horse is one that is trained to "cut" a calf from a herd of cattle for the purpose of branding them. Quite an honor.

[@lunchbox1398]

Not just in Berlin ! Every tree has a number ! My kid learned to read numbers that way !