The weekly weird

Published January 24, 2026

Man owns 11,000 snow globes

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Josef Kardinal of Nuremberg, Germany, has expanded his Guinness World Record-holding snow globe collection to 11,000 pieces, breaking his own record set in 2002. Collecting since 1994, his oldest globe dates back to 1889 and features the Eiffel Tower.

His collection includes unusual items such as a Coca-Cola phone globe, a Titanic scene, Santa Claus piloting a helicopter, and globes inspired by Star Wars, Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings. Kardinal says he loves how snow globes create a “perfect world” when shaken, capturing imaginations with their charm.

92-year-old wins Tekken 8 tournament

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A 92 year old Japanese grandmother, Hisako Sakai won a senior esports tournament for Tekken 8, defeating 74-year-old Goro Sugiyama in the finals.

The event, organised by Care eSports for players aged 73 to 95, featured livestreamed one-on-one matches.

Sakai played as Claudio, while Sugiyama chose Lili. Care eSports hopes to expand the competition to a national level in the future.

The densest island in the world

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Santa Cruz del Islote, a tiny Colombian islet in the San Bernardo Archipelago, covers just 0.012 square kilometres, about the size of two football fields, but is home to over 1,200 people.

Settled in the 19th century by Afro-Colombian fishermen, the community gradually grew into the world’s most densely populated island. With around 115 houses tightly packed together, residents are now building upwards to make room, raising concerns about safety and space.

Locals charge tourists for visits to protect their privacy while sharing their unique home. Despite cramped conditions, limited water supply and poverty, residents value the safety, close-knit community and car-free environment.

Father-son duo breaks sandwich-making record

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David Rush and his nine-year-old son, Jeremy, set a new Guinness World Record for the fastest time to make a sandwich as a two-person team (blindfolded and with no hands). Guided by Jeremy, Rush assembled a ham, cheese, butter and tomato sandwich in 36.5 seconds, beating the previous record of 40.17 seconds.

It marked Jeremy’s first official record, though he had helped in earlier attempts, including a stroller-pushing challenge at the age of five. The father-son duo trained extensively, going through several loaves of bread to perfect their teamwork.

Published in Dawn, Young World, January 24th, 2026

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