Icelandic Phallological Museum: Husavik, Iceland
This museum’s bizarre goal is to collect penis specimens from every mammal in Iceland, including several species that are endangered or currently extinct in Icelandic waters. The museum houses 245 specimens displayed like hunting trophies, embalmed in formaldehyde, or dried in display cases. The collection includes specimens of sperm, humpback and even the giant blue whale, polar bears, various kinds of seals and walruses and even tiny mice and other rodents. The strangest item is the penis of the “Icelandic Christmas Lad”, donated by a former mayor of Reykjavik. It is believed that “Icelandic Christmas Lad” refers to one of Santa’s toy-making helpers. Sigurour Hjartarson, a former teacher, is the founder and director of the museum. Hjartarson says he founded the museum so people from all over the world could “undertake serious study into the field of phallology in an organized, scientific fashion.”

Dog-Collar Museum: Kent, England
Although it is hard to believe that there’s a demand for this sort of thing, this museum, located inside of Leeds Castle, attracts more than 500,000 visitors every year. The dog collar collection counts over 100 unique items that present the history of canine-wear starting from early medieval times to the Victorian Age. The dog collars were originally gathered by Irish medieval collector John Hurt and his wife Gertrude, and were donated to Leeds Castle in 1979, as a tribute to the castle’s last private owner, Lady Baillie, a major dog lover. The antique dog collars tell 500 years of canine history, from early, 15th century dog collars, filled with spikes to protect the neck of hunting hounds against wolves, boars and bears, to glamorous leather and velvet baroque collars of the 18th century. Engraved silver collars from the last century, some fashioned by leading silversmiths of the day, form an interesting section. Many come in pairs joined by short chains, such as those presented to Top and Tabinet engraved “The Property of Earl Talbot. The Winner of the Great Champion all aged (Puppy) stakes for all England 32 Dogs at 20 guin’s each at Ashdown Park. Dec 14th 1838.” Other inscriptions are less formal. An 18th century English brass collar simply states; “I am Mr Pratt’s Dog, King St, Nr Wokingham, Berks. Whose Dog are You?”

Mutter Museum: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
The Mütter Museum was founded to educate future doctors about anatomy and human medical anomalies. Today, it serves as a valuable resource for educating and enlightening the public about our medical past and telling important stories about what it means to be human. On display are some 20,000 objects showcasing gruesome human health anomalies including a wax model of a woman with a human horn growing out of her forehead, a five-foot-long human colon that contained over 40 pounds of fecal matter, and the petrified body of the mysterious Soap Lady, whose corpse was turned into a soapy substance called adipocere. The museum also houses a collection of 2,000 objects extracted from people’s throats, a malignant tumour removed from President Grover Cleveland’s hard palate, the conjoined liver from Siamese twins Chang and Eng Bunker and a growth removed from the thorax of President Abraham Lincoln’s assassin, John Wilkes Booth.

Museum of Medieval Instruments of Torture: Prague, Czech Republic
This educational exhibit with historical explanations in six languages showcases an extensive collection of torture devices, many of which originated during those wonderful years known as The Inquisition. These replicas of the originals will send a shiver down the spines of all who contemplate the horrors unleashed upon mankind in the name of religion, war or just plain old sadism. Aside from knuckle-crackers and cat-o-nine tails, torture devices utilizing fire and plenty of needles await you, iron maidens, and saws meant to separate bodies in half–lengthwise. And if your head’s not screwed on right, the Spanish garrotta chair will fix that for you, literally driving a screw right through you skull.

The Burlesque Hall of Fame: Las Vegas, Nevada
Formerly known as Exotic World, the museum historically was located on the site of an abandoned goat farm in Helendale, California. It documents the history of burlesque from its 19th century origins through its golden age in the mid 20th century, and displays artifacts commemorating historic burlesque performers such as Blaze Starr, Lili St. Cyr, Chesty Morgan and Tempest Storm. Exotic World originated as the private collection of retired exotic dancer Jennie Lee founder of the League of Exotic Dancers and former “Bazoom Girl” (a moniker she earned for effortlessly twirling tassels on both her bosom and behind). It’s currently curated by retired burlesque performer Dixie Evans, who often personally leads tours through the exhibits. Unique individual items include ivory fans used by Sally Rand, gloves and a black velvet shoulder cape worn by Gypsy Rose Lee, a heart-shaped couch owned by Jayne Mansfield and the cremation ashes of Miss Sherri Champagne.

Sulabh International Museum of Toilets: New Delhi, India
“Unlike body functions like dance, drama and songs, defecation is considered very lowly.” So begins a 1995 paper written by Dr. Bindeswar Pathak, the founder of this New Delhi museum as well as the Sulabh International Social Service Organization. Ostensibly part of a sanitation crusade, the Sulabh International Museum of Toilets follows the toilet’s historical pipeline from 3,000 B.C. to the present. What began as a hole in the ground—and remains a hole in the ground in some parts of the world has come a long way in terms of design, comfort and plumbing. The museum offers fun facts (Louis XIV purportedly used to relieve himself while holding court), examinations of toilet customs from around the world, and arts and literature (from poems to painstakingly crafted chamber pots).

Serial Killer Museum: Florence, Italy
Who needs to visit galleries crammed with the world’s greatest art when you can listen to a man with a creepy robotic voice describe the crimes of John Wayne Gacy and Ted Bundy in infinitely gory detail? As well as offering the chance to buddy up with waxworks of Charles Manson and notorious cannibals, Florence’s most bloodthirsty attraction also investigates methods used to track down the killers–from blood sample analysis to psychological profiling–and the methods of dispatching them. That means mock-ups of gas chambers and electric chairs. The displays include waxwork models of notorious serial killers, often in an environment associated with their case. Gacy is dressed as a clown in a mock-up of his living room, with the bones of his victims buried beneath. Ed Gein, the inspiration for both Buffalo Bill in Thomas Harris’ Red Dragon and Norman Bates in Psycho, is in his shack, creating his perfect woman out of the skin of his victims.

Cockroach Hall of Fame and Museum: Plano, Texas
Back in the 1980’s Michael Bohdan paid $1,000 for the largest cockroach in Texas, which got him an invitation on The Tonight Show. That started the roach craziness and before he knew it, the bug exterminator found himself on a tour judging a cockroach dress-up contest. After the tour ended, all the funny-dressed bugs were to be thrown away, but Bodhan decided to keep them and put them on display in Plano. And that’s how the Cockroach Hall of Fame and Museum was born. Ever since, the bug-control master has been killing roaches and adding them to his collection. Now the collection features more than 25 dressed-up bugs, including Marilyn Monroach, David Letteroach and Ross Peroach and Liberoachi, a dead cockroach dressed up in a suit and wearing a mink cape, playing a tiny piano. There are also some live Madagascar Hissing Roaches. More than a little intimidating, they are four inches long, over one inch thick and make a hissing noise when they’re disturbed. The Cockroach Hall of Fame and Museum also offers its guest some very special snacks–barbecue-flavoured Worm Snacks (dried roach larvae).

Photo Credits:

#1: news.com.au

#2: scienceroll.com

#3: cpa.psu.edu

#4: msnbc.msn.com

1. At which Mayan city do tourists gather during the spring and fall to watch a snake slide down a pyramid?
A. Palenque
B. Tikal
C. Uxmal
D. Chichen Itza

2. What is the only country whose national flag is not rectangular or square, but rather the shape of two stacked triangles?
A. Nepal
B. Cyprus
C. Saudi Arabia
D. Cambodia

3. What is the world’s safest airline based on the number of miles a carrier has flown without a fatal accident?
A. Alaska Airlines
B. Qantas Airways
C. Swissair
D. AeroMexico

4. In which U.S. state are you most likely to be struck by lightning?
A. Hawaii
B. Texas
C. Florida
D. Washington

5. What country are you in if you are travelling to see a famous natural landmark that the native inhabitants call Uluru?
A. Tibet
B. Tanzania
C. Ecuador
D. Australia

6. In which city will you find the great square of Djemaa el Fna, “the gathering place of the dead”?
A. Damascus
B. Zanzibar
C. Marrakesh
D. Timbuktu

7. The well known children’s song “Here Comes Santa Claus” was inspired by a 1946 parade down a street in what American city?
A. New York
B. Boston
C. Detroit
D. Los Angeles

8. The Bay of Fires has been named the world’s “hottest” travel destination for 2009 by the international guide book, Lonely Planet. Where is the Bay of Fires?
A. Chile
B. Tasmania
C. New Zealand
D. Madagascar

9. Which country consumes the largest amount of coffee per person per year?
A. Norway
B. Italy
C. Brazil
D. The United States

10. Which country produces 60 percent of the world’s emeralds?
A. Russia
B. South Africa
C. Colombia
D. Australia

11. Considered “the religious capital of India,” this city attracts more than one million Hindu pilgrims each year. What is its name?
A. Varanasi
B. Bangalore
C. Dharamshala
D. Calcutta

12. The European colonial powers fought to gain control of the Spice Islands. What is the name by which we know these islands today?
A. The Maldives
B. The West Indies
C. The Moluccas
D. The New Hebrides

13. The skyline of what country’s capital city is dominated by the empty and dilapidated 105-storey Ryugyong Hotel?
A. Burma
B. Laos
C. Uzbekistan
D. North Korea

14. If you are driving the world’s longest highway, which country are you in?
A. Canada
B. Russia
C. China
D. Australia

15. According to Forbes magazine which city currently boasts the largest number of billionaires?
A. New York
B. Los Angeles
C. Moscow
D. London

Answers

1. D. Chichen Itza
The phenomenon that El Castillo is famous for occurs twice each year, at the spring and fall equinoxes. As the equinox sun sets, a play of light and shadow creates the appearance of a snake that gradually undulates down the stairway of the pyramid. This diamond-backed snake is composed of seven or so triangular shadows, cast by the stepped terraces of the pyramid. The sinking sun seems to give life to the sinuous shadows, which crawl down the stairs, before ultimately uniting with one of two enormous snake-head sculptures carved into the base of the stairway. Thousands of people gather to see this phenomenon, which may have been viewed by the ancient Maya as the manifestation of the god Kukulcan, the feathered serpent.

2. A. Nepal
The unusual shape is apparently owed to the fact that the flag was derived from two pennants that were used by separate branches of the Rana family, members of which served as the nation’s prime minister from 1846 until 1951. The white moon in the upper, smaller triangle represents the royal house, and the white sun represents the Rana family. Adopted as the official flag of Nepal 1962, the double pennant actually dates back to the 19th century.

3. B. Qantas Airways
Remember this exchange from the movie Rain Man? Tom Cruise says to Dustin Hoffman: “All airlines have crashed at one time or another. That doesn’t mean they aren’t safe.” “Qantas,” Hoffman replies. “Qantas never crashed.” Well, that isn’t quite right: the Australian airline suffered several fatal crashes in its early days, most involving biplanes or flying boats. However, Qantas remains the safest airline if one measures safety by the number of miles a carrier has flown without fatal accident. That said, hundreds of airlines have suffered no fatal crashes.

4. C. Florida
Florida has more thunderstorms–and thus, more lightning strikes–than any other U.S. state. Known as the “Lightning Capital of the World,” Florida averages more than 10 deaths and 30 injuries from electrical bolts per year. Approximately 50 percent of the deaths and injuries occur to individuals involved in recreational activities, and nearly 40 percent of those are water-related: boating, swimming, surfing and others.

5. D. Australia
Uluru, better known to the outside world as Ayers Rock, is one of Australia’s most recognizable natural icons. The sandstone formation stands 348 metres high with most of its bulk below the ground, and measures 9.4 kilometres in circumference. It is notable for appearing to change colour as the different light strikes it at different times of the day and year, with sunset a particularly remarkable sight when it briefly glows bright red. On 19 July 1873, the surveyor William Gosse visited Uluru and named it Ayers Rock in honour of the then-Chief Secretary of South Australia, Sir Henry Ayers. Since then, both names have been used. In 1993, a dual naming policy was adopted In Australia that allowed official names to consist of both the traditional Aboriginal name and the English name. On 15 December 1993, the landmark was renamed “Ayers Rock/Uluru” and became the first officially dual-named feature in the Northern Territory. The order of the dual names was officially reversed to “Uluru/Ayers Rock” on 6 November 2002 following a request from the Regional Tourism Association in Alice Springs.

6. C. Marrakesh
The name Djemaa el Fna in Arabic could either mean “assembly of the dead” or “place of the vanished mosque” but there is nothing ghostlike about the Djemaa. It is a massive square packed day and night by locals and tourists alike and a heritage site listed by UNESCO whose cultural space is a “masterpiece of the oral and intangible heritage of humanity.” The plaza is the centre of medina life both day and night as a gathering place and unofficial stage for street theatre. For over a millennium, the daily bill has featured acrobats, henna tattoo artists, storytellers, belly dancers, musicians, snake charmers and potion sellers. 

7. D. Los Angeles
Gene Autry, “the singing cowboy,” was inspired to write the song after riding his horse down Hollywood Boulevard in the 1946 Christmas Parade and hearing numerous children call out, “Here Comes Santa Claus!” Soon after, Hollywood Boulevard became known as Santa Claus Lane during the holiday season.

8. B. Tasmania
“White beaches of hourglass-fine sand, Bombay Sapphire sea, an azure sky–and nobody,” wrote Lonely Planet. “This is the secret edge of Tasmania, laid out like a pirate’s treasure map of perfect beach after sheltered cove, all fringed with forest. It’s not long since the Bay of Fires came to international attention, and the crowds are bound to flock. Now is the time to visit.” The Bay of Fires finished higher on the hot list than such other contenders as the Basque country of France and Spain; Chiloe in Chile; Ko Tao in Thailand; Languedoc in France; and Nam Ha in Laos.

9. A. Norway
The serious caffeine fiends are all living in Northern Europe. Although more coffee is consumed in volume by drinkers in Brazil and America, Scandinavia tops the charts in terms of per capita consumption. Norway leads all nations with 10.7 kilograms consumed by person per year, followed closely by Finland, Denmark and Sweden.

10. C. Colombia
Some of the rarest and most expensive emeralds in the world come from three main mining areas in Colombia: Muzo, Coscuez, and Chivor. The green gems were mined there as far back as 1,000 A.D., long before the Spaniards arrived. Many of the gold and emerald encrusted items that the indigenous tribes created are displayed in the Museo del Oro in Bogotá.

11. A. Varanasi
Varanasi, or Benares, as it sometimes called, is one of the world’s most ancient cities. As Mark Twain wrote: “Benares is older than history, older than tradition, older even than legend, and looks twice as old as all of them put together.” Located in North India, in the eastern part of the state of Uttar Pradesh, along the left bank of the Ganges River, ”the holy city of India,” attracts more than one million pilgrims each year. For the devout Hindu, Varanasi has always been a special place, besides being a pilgrimage centre. It is considered especially auspicious to die here, ensuring an instant route to heaven.

12. C. The Moluccas
The Spice Islands are known today as the Moluccas or Maluku Islands. They lie on the equator between Sulawesi and New Guinea in Indonesia, and were at one time the world’s only source of mace and nutmeg. Because of the high value that the spices had in Europe and the large incomes that it produced, the Dutch and British were soon involved in conflicts to try to gain a monopoly over the region. The fighting for control over these small islands became very intense with the Dutch even giving the island of Manhattan to the British in exchange for a small island that gave the Dutch full control over the Banda archipelago. The Bandanese people suffered badly in the fighting with most of the inhabitants being either slaughtered or enslaved by the Dutch. More than 6,000 were killed during the Spice Wars.

13. D. North Korea
The Ryugyong Hotel in North Korea’s capital city of Pyongyang is a complete engineering failure. Standing 1,083 feet tall, with a total of 3.9 million square feet of floor space, it was planned to have 3,000 rooms and seven revolving restaurants. It would be the tallest hotel and seventh largest building in the world if it were finished. It would also have been the first building with over one hundred floors outside of New York or Chicago. The first event scheduled to be held here was June 1989’s World Festival of Youth and Students, but the hotel was nowhere near ready for that event. Its construction was plagued with problems, and after five years ground to a halt due to a shortage of funding. Work has never resumed; the project was abandoned, leaving a lonely construction crane perched on the hotel’s peak. The shell of the building is complete, but it has not been certified as safe for occupancy. There are no windows, fixtures, or fittings. The extremely poor quality concrete used in its construction has left the building sagging to such a great degree that the structure can never be finished without a massive overhaul. The hotel, which was once found on city maps before construction even began, has now been completely stricken from the official maps. Tour guides usually claim not to know where it is.

14. A. Canada
Officially completed on September 3, 1962, the Trans-Canada Highway is the longest highway in the world. Stretching across Canada from Victoria, British Columbia, to St. John’s, Newfoundland, it covers 7,821 kilometres.

15. C. Moscow
According to Forbes magazine, the Russian capital is home to 74 billionaires, with an average net worth of $5.9 billion. That’s quite a jump from just five billionaire residents in 2002. Russian aluminum tycoon Oleg Deripaska is the richest of Russia’s 500 billionaires with an estimated worth at about $40 billion. Moscow knocked off perennial No. 1 city New York, which ranks close behind with 71 billionaires and an average net worth of $3.3 billion. Coming in a distant third was London with 36 billionaires.

Photo Credits:

#1: mythencyclopedia.com

#2: sacred-destinations.com

#3: sweetwatervillas.com.au

#4: wikipedia.org/wiki/Varanasi