© Getty Images

It pays to look different -

On January 11, 2023, Miss El Salvador, Alejandra Guajardo Sada, walked onstage during the 71st Miss Universe pageant dressed in a golden Bitcoin outfit!

© Getty Images

Planting the seeds of success -

Argentine farmers acknowledged Lionel Messi in January by creating the face of the country's soccer hero in a field of corn in Ballesteros, Cordoba province. The design, by agricultural engineer Carlos Faricelli, was made using precision planting.

© Getty Images

It's a dog's life! -

Canines stole the show at Elysian Impact's inaugural CatWalk FurBaby fashion show at Sony Hall on February 10 in New York City. The event brought together designers, models, and rescue animals for a day of fashion and fundraising for animal welfare organizations.

© Getty Images

Heartbreaking news -

It was announced on February 14 (Valentine's Day!) that a portion of Croatia's famous heart-shaped island of Galešnjak was up for sale, for a cool US$11 million.

© Shutterstock

A mammoth task -

Vow, an Australian company, announced on March 29 that it had created a mammoth meatball made from flesh cultivated using the DNA of an extinct woolly mammoth.

© NL Beeld

New York's rat catcher -

It was announced on April 14 that Kathleen Corradi had been appointed New York City's first-ever director of rodent mitigation, or "rat czar." Her job is to find "innovative ways to cut off rats' food sources" and use "new technologies to detect and exterminate rat populations."

© Getty Images

Someone "out of the ordinary" -

On April 26, the late Brazilian soccer legend Pelé was further honored with the announcement that "Pelé" is now a word added to the dictionary in Portugal as an adjective to describe someone "out of the ordinary."

© Getty Images

Busting the bank -

A Dutch court on April 28 banned a man from donating any more of his sperm after he fathered at least 550 children in the Netherlands and other countries.

© Shutterstock

A good bet -

It was revealed on June 1 that a punter who believed 14 years ago that Josh Tongue would one day play for England and placed a cheeky bet had collected £50,000 (US$63,000) after the young cricketer did indeed debut for his country.

© Getty Images

Reversal of fortune -

In Austria in an embarrassing faux pas, the Social Democrats said on June 5 that they'd declared the wrong candidate as the winner of a nail-biting party election. Instead of Hans Peter Doskozil (pictured), it was Andreas Babler who was actually elected to take charge of the country's oldest party.

© Getty Images

Learning to smile like the stars -

According to news reports published on June 6, Japanese women were being trained to break into "Hollywood smiles" after the easing of mask-wearing regulations post COVID-19. They are being tutored by Kawano Keiko, instructor of the Smile Training School in Tokyo.

© Shutterstock

A "virgin birth" -

Scientists recorded the first-known "virgin birth" in a female crocodile at a Costa Rica zoo. The reptile had no contact with males for about 16 years, according to a June 7 press release.

© Getty Images

Ducking the issue -

A pair of enormous yellow rubber ducks caused quite a flutter when they appeared in Victoria Harbor, Hong Hong, on June 12 to promote happiness and luck.

© Getty Images

Highway to Hel -

On June 14 in response to protests by Christian conservatives, a Polish bus operator announced the route to the town of Hel on the Hel peninsula, previously designated number 666, would in the future serve the traveling public as bus number 669.

© Shutterstock

Animal house -

Ecuador's notorious Bellavista prison was subject to a raid on June 16, when security forces confiscated live pigs, fighting cocks, and more than two dozen bladed weapons, among other contraband.

© Getty Images

Where there's a will -

An anonymous fan enamored with Neymar left everything to the soccer star in their will, it was reported on June 28. The value of the will wasn't disclosed, but it's unlikely Neymar needs the money, with estimated earnings of US$85 million for 2023, according to Forbes.

© Getty Images

AI in a caring role -

"Nadine," an AI-powered humanoid social robot, was unveiled to the world in Switzerland on July 6. Modeled on Professor Nadia Magnenat Thalmann, it's hoped that AI robots like Nadine could play a future role as companions in care homes.

© Getty Images

How sweet! -

A Lisbon cake shop, Balcão do Marquês, prepared to mark Pope Francis' visit to Portugal in August by baking batches of cookies with the image of the pontiff's face. The holy biscuits went on sale on July 28.

© Getty Images

Bear necessity -

Visitors gathered in their hundreds at Hangzhou Zoo in China on August 2 after a video of one of its sun bears went viral, with some suggesting she looked so human that she might be a staff member in a bear suit!

© Getty Images

Quick turnaround -

In September, a Delta Airlines flight from Atlanta to Barcelona was forced to turn around after a passenger experienced an extreme bout of  diarrhea.

© Getty Images

Sleeping on the job -

On September 18, citizens in the village of Brezna in Montenegro proved themselves the country's laziest citizens after beating the record for lying down in an annual resting contest. Some stayed in bed for 50 days!

© Getty Images

Mexican aliens -

In a story that broke on September 14 and subsequently made headlines worldwide, two apparently "alien corpses" were shown to Mexico's Congress. The tiny extraterrestrials were fossilized and believed to be at least 1,000 years old.

© Getty Images

Finally, a funeral -

"Stoneman Willie," a jailed thief who died in a Pennsylvania prison in 1895 and was accidentally mummified by undertakers, finally got a proper burial on October 2 after lying in a funeral home for 128 years.

© Getty Images

A wooly spectacle -

Early October saw the streets of Madrid given over to thousands of sheep as they followed an ancient herding route. The wooly spectacle was all part of the annual Transhumance Festival.

© Getty Images

Senior canine -

Bobi, at 31 years and 165 days old the world's oldest dog according to Guinness World Records, passed away peacefully at his home in Portugal on October 24.

© Getty Images

Golden opportunity -

On November 7, four men were charged over the theft of an 18-carat gold toilet from Blenheim Palace, in England. The glittering lavatory is worth upwards of US$6 million.

© Getty Images

"Symbol of servility" -

In November, government officials in Kyrgyzstan began the process of tweaking the country's national flag, which would do away with what many believe looks like a sunflower—"a symbol of servility."

© Getty Images

Sexy soundtrack -

The Euro 2024 draw was interrupted by sex noises on December 2 as Switzerland were named in the same group as Scotland, Hungary, and hosts Germany. More lewd sounds were heard, later attributed to an internet prankster using a mobile phone.

© Getty Images

Oil war looms -

On December 4, Venezuela's president Nicolás Maduro claimed sovereignty over the disputed oil-rich Essequibo region, historically part of Guyana. Meanwhile, US secretary of state Anthony Blinken has reaffirmed support for Guyana.

Sources: (New York Post) (U.S. News & World Report) (AP News) (Reuters) (Smithsonian Magazine) (BBC)

See also: The Venezuela-Guyana Essequibo crisis: Oil wars and heir dire consequences

© Getty Images