Robert the doll

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Today I shall take you on a new trip. We will go to a museum to visit a doll. This doll is a special one. So grab my hand, and let’s find out more about this doll. We have to be careful. The doll might get upset and curse us.

Why is it so special? Because it is supposed that was alive or acting like being alive. It is believed that the doll was manufactured by Steiff company from Germany. Richard Steiff was the German designer that helped design the Teddy Bear.

Robert the doll was given as a gift. A grandfather gave his nephew the doll. He bought it from Germany around the year 1904. Some say that the doll was manufactured by a woman employed by Eugene’s parents. In this part, the story goes that she put a spell on it as revenge. Whatever version you believe, it seems that the doll liked to do things around the house, like moving things talking.

At first, everything seemed ok, but the doll started to appear alive with time. The little boy that received the doll was Eugene Otto( painter and author). He began to say that the doll was alive. He wasn’t the only one who thought that the doll was alive. His parents started to feel the same after they heard noises coming from their child’s room one night. When they got into Eugene’s room, they saw him frightened, saying that Robert the Doll had started to move the furniture. Often when Eugene was doing something nasty, he would say that the doll put him to do it

His parents heard them often talk in different voices. On many occasions, Robert the Doll made things that scared people. Years after Eugen grew up, he returned to his parent’s house and found Robert once again. After his parent’s death, Eugene moved with his wife in his parent’s house, and Robert started to do nasty things once again. Eugene at first gave Robert the doll one room, but later, when his wife complained that she felt uneasy with Robert, Eugene moved the doll to the attic. Staying there wasn’t too pleasant for Robert, so the story goes that he was heard by visitors pacing up and down. He will also be seen at another room window by kids from outside. Or find it in another corner of the room than the left one. Robert the doll lived in this house until 1994. Until that time, Robert did many nasty things to curious people to come near him. Some even blame him for car accidents, broken bones, accidents, or other bad things that were happening to them. Robert moved in 1994 to a museum. The museum’s name is East Martello Museum. Even here, the doll still does nasty things makes the people that take care of the museum feel a bit frightened. Some still blame the doll after they visit it for all the troubles that come after

It seems that Robert doesn’t like to be touched or photographed. People have issues when they try to take pictures. Pictures are not good, or equipment doesn’t work, at least that’s what people are saying. I hope with us he will be gentle.

Here is a link that I found on the internet, where people are talking about Robert and his effects. (149) Robert “The Haunted Doll” Rules After Dark at Ft. East Martello Museum Key West – YouTube

I hope you enjoyed our trip!

The death that hides in the water-Lake Natron, Tanzania

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Today, I shall take you on another trip. It will be a long trip. Our destination is Lake Natron in Tanzania. You will ask, why go so far away? Well, it is because the lake is kind of special. I m not sure if this is the best way. It is special because of the water composition. It is a salt lake similar to the Dead Sea. In the salt aspect and how the water evaporates and leaves the salt and other minerals and different because the lake is also highly alkaline, has a lot of natron in( natron is a combination between baking soda and sodium carbonate).

Natron is an old substance used in different ways over the years. It has been known since ancient Egypt. It was used as a cleaning product for the house and the body. Blended with oil was used as a soap. From natron was also made a kind of mouthwash using natron undiluted. Mixed with other things was used as an early antiseptic for minor wounds. Egyptians used natron also in the process of mummification. Natron helped in the drying process. Mixed with castor oil was used to obtain a smokeless fuel used by Egyptians to paint the walls of their tombs. Inside the house, it was used as an insecticide repellent. Another use was to bleach the leather.

Natron was also used as a meat preserver. Now that I told you a bit about what the substance can do let’s go back to the lake. This lake ph.’s is relatively high, around 10,5 or higher, almost as high as ammonia. Even if the composition of the water makes a living in such conditions quite harsh, there are still some fishes in the water(Alcolapia latilabris), some algae, and flamingos that feed on the algae. Flamingos like this lake as they are not disturbed. We can’t swim in this lake because the water is caustic. The most minor cut we would have or wound that we could have would make us be more in pain because of the water effect on the skin. During the dry season, when the water is lower, many birds’ bodies are coming out of water. They are pretty well preserved, as you can see in the picture below in the link: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/this-alkaline-african-lake-turns-animals-into-stone-445359/In the link above, you can see photos of the bird that died and were conserved by the lake water. They look creepy and, in a way, alive. The temperature in the lake is around 60 Celsius degrees, a swim for some animals can be fatal and lead to death and a well-preserved calcified body. The lake can have a pin-red color because of the bacteria living inside the lake and feeding with salt. So let’s have a walk and enjoy the view! Here is a video that I found on YouTube about the lake. You can heave a look: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SML8K3WQfPY