Sometimes there are whole worlds tucked away in the smallest, most obscure little corners of the world. On an otherwise unremarkable road in suburban Maryland, not far from the National Institutes of Health, in a little row-house development of medical office buildings, Village Green Apothecary contains a whole universe of vitamins, botanicals, lotions, potions from all over the world.

Animal, plant and mineral. it is all here. Loofah sponges from Sweden, bamboo shirts made in New Zealand, vitamins and supplements made from everywhere. I wandered around for a bit, eyes a bit glazed over with wonderment, not exactly knowing what I was looking at.

The hand lotion section (with a few nice testers) seemed approacable. As did the chocolate snacks. So I settled on a few of those items, and left all the other miracles-in-a-bottle to explore another day.