Origins

You may be wondering why I went to visit the world's largest frying pan. You may not care. For those in the former group, here is the answer to your question. And this may look familiar if you read Dutranation, so sorry for the redundancy.

In 1996, a John Travolta film hit theaters. Well, actually, a couple probably did, but it is this specific movie that inspired me to visit these roadside attractions. That movie was Michael. The story of a fallen angel that agrees to be interviewed by two tabloid reporters as long as they take him to see a couple of American originals, such as the world's largest ball of twine.

I still recommend the movie, whether or not it inspired me from my childhood to now. In fact, I should watch it again. And it's not just a story about a fallen angel visiting really big things. It's got Andie McDowell, William Hurt, Oliver Platt, and an adorable dog.

In July I went home to visit my family. Sitting on my bed I usually find a collection of items my mom has collected because she knows I'll appreciate them. Included in the pile that month was this clipping:


I don't think she remembered me talking about this after watching Michael, and I am not sure why she kept this clipping, but boy did it make my day! I finally had a place to start my adventures!

I continued to research different large sculptures and statues from around the world. I found the closest one was in Long Beach, Wash., and decided to make that my first American original to visit.

You may ask yourself, why even bother to visit these places? My answer to you is: why not? Clearly someone in that town or city built these structures to attract foreign visitors. In my research I found that there is actually a documentary in production about the efforts of small towns to attract tourists.

I don't know if I'll be able to visit every one of these tourist attractions, as many of them are in cities I've never heard of or seen on a map. I'm going to try to visit as many as possible, and even go overseas if I can. As an employee of an airline I have the added bonus of transportation at my fingertips. There are also multiple claims to fame of similar objects. For example, there are apparently three world's largest balls of twine.

Put it to my quirky personality to have me look for these objects. I mean, who in their right mind would intentionally hunt for the world's largest roller skate? But it's more than just seeing the claim to fame of the city I visit. I'll be contributing to the local economy, bring back stories of a place I would not have ventured to if it weren't for the landmark in their fair city, and hopefully I'll bring back some great pictures.