In Russia, Women Compete to Be Bitten by Mosquitoes

Mosquitoes: the scourge of every corner of the Earth except for Berezniki, Russia. That town is gearing up for its three-day Russian Mosquito Festival, which begins on Friday. The BBC picked up an Interfax report on the event, which was founded in 2013 as a bit of a "joke" festival. But this element is reportedly for real: There's a "Most Delicious Girl" contest in which shorts- or dress-clad women compete to see who can attract the most mosquito bites in 20 minutes.

A previous winner racked up more than 100, as determined by a set of judges that includes a doctor, and the fest's organizer says those who have the best luck "eat well, don't drink, and don't smoke." The Moscow Times reports 3,000 people are expected, and also flags a less-than-PC-sounding component: the "Mosquito Legs" contest, in which the thinness of women's legs is judged. (More strange stuff stories.)