June 13, 2026
National Wishing Day
National Wishing Day: superstitions, lucky charms, and wish-making traditions around the world.
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Today's trivia podcast was made with the help of AI to generate the daily topics and questons.
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Kalaruga shark Media. Hi. I'm Mark Ellison and today's theme
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is National Wishing Day. Superstitions, lucky charms and wish making
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traditions around the world. Question one. In Japan, which summer
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festival invites people to write their wishes on colorful paper
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strips and hang them on bamboo, echoing the legend of
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star crossed lovers Orihime and Hikoboshi meeting across the Milky Way.
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Question two. Tourists often toss a coin with their right
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hand over their left shoulder to ensure a return to
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what iconic Roman fountain? A modern spin on ancient wishing
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well traditions? Question three. At a holiday table in the
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United States, two people pull apart a dried wishbone for luck.
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What is the anatomical name of this found in birds
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like turkeys and chickens? Question four. During a luminous festival
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in northern Thailand, thousands release paper sky lanterns that symbolically
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carry away misfortune and hopes into the night. What is
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this festival called? Question five? In Ireland, visitors famously lean
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backward to kiss a stone said to bestow the gift
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of the gab at Which castle is this wishful ritual performed.
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We'll be right back with these answers after this break.
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Welcome back. Question one, which Japanese festival involves hanging wish
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strips on bamboo? Answer Tanabata. During Tanabata, typically celebrated around
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July seventh, people write wishes on tanzaku paper and tie
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them to bamboo. The custom comes from the folk tale
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vega or Ahemi and altaire Hikobashi lovers allowed to meet
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once a year. Question two, which Roman fountain is famous
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for coin toss wish making? Answer the Trevi Fountain. The
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Trevi Fountain's coin throwing ritual is said to guarantee a
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return to Rome. The coins collected are donated to charity.
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The practice echoes older traditions of making offerings to water
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for good fortune. Question three, what's the anatomical name of
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the wishbone? Answer the fercula. The fercula is a fused
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pair of clavicles that reinforces a bird's chest for flight.
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Folklore holds that the person who gets the larger piece
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wins a granted wish. Question four name the Thai Lantern
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festival for making wishes answery Pungy Puny Pung, centered in
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cheng Mai and often coinciding with Loy Krathong, features comloy
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lanterns drifting skyward. Participants commonly make wishes as they release
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the lanterns, a gesture of renewal and good luck. Question five,
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Where do you kiss the Blarney Stone for luck? Answer?
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Blarney Castle. The Blarney Stone is set into Blarney Castle
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near Cork and is said to grant eloquence to those
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who kiss it. The ritual has drawn wish seekers and
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tourists for over a century. That concludes today's five daily
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trivia questions. I'm Mark Ellison, and today's questions were crafted
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with the help of AI technology. See you tomorrow.
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