Museums are a great way for travelers to learn about a place’s history, culture and art. But not all museums feature the works of their prided painters. Some choose to feature the weirdest things.

1. Instead of featuring the best, the Museum of Bad Art in Boston, US features the worst. You have to admit, there are some drawings and paintings that are difficult to appreciate. Some people are baffled at how a painting can be called art when it looks like it can be done by anyone. If you’re that type, then this museum will be very entertaining and amusing. Curious? Fly free to Boston!

2. India sure puts value on sanitation. Sulabh International Museum of Toilets stands in New Delhi, India. It features the evolution of toilets and the different technologies used for its improvement. You will be surprised how creative people can be with their toilets.

3. Paris takes their title as the world’s most romantic city to a different level. Musee De L’Erotisme shows various erotic objects from around the world. It holds many paintings and sculptures, from popular to sacred art, all depicting sex from different perspectives. See for yourself! Fly to Paris for free!

4. If Paris glorifies sex as a whole, Iceland puts a particular interest in phalluses. The Icelandic Phallological Museum is the only museum in the world to put on display all the mammal phalluses that can be found in their country.

5. For those who crave gore, Prague Torture Museum will not disappoint. Iron maidens, chastity belts, and various saws that were common instruments for punishment in the Dark Ages are put on display in Prague, Czech Republic.

If you’re tired of the conventional art in the usual museums, these sites are worth visiting. It’s always good to feast your eyes on the unusual and unconventional.

Most of the time, average travelers look over the best places to visit, especially if they rely on the tourist maps sold at airport gift shops. Those maps are usually out of date, presenting only the popular and common sights to see. It is extremely exciting to penetrate inside a culture’s wacky vibe, know its alternative views on pop culture and get infused through an out-of-this-world traveling experience. If you’re looking for alternative scenic fixes, here’s a special treat for your wandering eyes and footsies:

1. Octopied Building, France.  After you visit the Eiffel Tower and The Louvre, you might want to take a peek at this visually entertaining structure that lies in the heart of France. Made by artist FilthyLuker, he says that in his mind,  Cthulhu lies inside the building, dreaming. If you love reading the H.P. Lovecraft’s tale about this mythos, then this site should definitely be included in your tourist list. Visit Paris for free!

2. The Spoonbridge and Cherry, Walker Center of Art, Minneapolis. Made by Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen, this gigantic spoon resting on a soft field of grass is the celebratory piece of the Center’s Sculpture Garden 20th anniversary. Not only is it massively attractive, the cherry adds the drama needed for countless photo ops you might want to take part of.

3. Dinner in the Sky, Toronto. There’s more to life than a super spicy chicken neck paired with cinnamon slushees, If you’re up for a wild dining set-up, Toronto’s 115 feet-high dinner table awaits you. Balancing your meal in the suspended glass room isn’t the only thrill, you’ll also get to see highly-skilled waiters serving champagne in acrobat-like flexibility. Remember to bring extra wipes or napkins once you visit the Dinner in the Sky, something tells me eating the tomato soup won’t be very tidy at all. If you want to have that unusually thrilling tour to Toronto for free, click here.

4. Kingman Reef, Pacific Atolls and Islands. Are you tired of the usual crayon fish-infested reefs that you see everyday in the Discovery Channel? Ecologist Enric Sala found this 500-year-old giant lobe coral in the Kingman Reef that has been said to harbor the size of Manhattan City. Not only is it a beauty to look at, it is also shaped like a flying saucer! He described it to be “a glittering city of staghorn, mushroom, pillar, and plate corals packed so tightly together there is hardly a patch of bare sand making it a true underwater Eden”. You might be surprised to find Spongebob, Flipper or Ariel somewhere in there, I heard they were all off to see this majestic reef to hunt for crabs and shrimp.

5. Fight Club, Union Square, New York. I know we’re not supposed to “talk about it”, but Chuck Palahniuk’s  novel Fight Club was sensationalized after the release of its movie adaptation starring Brad Pitt and Edward Norton, but little do others know that Fight Club is for real! The urban youth inspired by Fight Club’s theme is ongoing in (mostly) clandestine locations around town, but in Union Square, it’s free entertainment. Picture yourself watching a live UFC match, only with hipsters and all sorts of young people as the players. You might even see a emo guy show-off his teary dragon kick and suicide jabs too. New York may be an expensive city, but you can always fly there for free.

Adolescence is typically a difficult, confusing stage for any individual. Angst and raging hormones almost never miss a growing teenager. Media today has an immense concern for the supposedly hellish high school life. But other teenagers in other parts of the world experience more severe types of pain. There are certain tribes that require adolescents to undergo traditional rites of passage, which can be excruciatingly painful.

Initiation for the youth in Suriname, South America involves wasps. These agonizing stingers are locked in a weave that is to be tied to the adolescent. The teen should not whimper during this initiation. For the Wayana culture, the boys are the ones subjected to the pain. For the Carib, however, it is the girls who undergo the ritual, but with ants instead of wasps. This rite of passage is not exclusive to Suriname. The tradition is practiced in other tribes in South America to signify strength and bravery.

Finger mutilation is another agonizing rite of passage. Some tribes in Africa have different reasons for chopping off their fingers. For the Dugum Dani tribe of New Guinea, the practice is a must for young girls. Few grown women have their complete 10 fingers. There are some men who also have incomplete fingers, but they were not forced into the practice since most of their jobs required complete fingers (i.e., hunting). This tradition, though agonizing, has cultural significance for the dead. It is mostly done as part of grieving for the deceased.

Papua New Guinea also has a painful ritual for young boys. Nasal mutilation is a common practice for the Gahuka-Gana tribe. Mothers cover their sons with mud before they are sent off to the river to live with warriors for six weeks. The warriors use sticks and leaves to injure the adolescent’s nose. Inducing nasal hemorrhage is repeatedly done until the boy is welcomed to manhood. The practice has something to do with cleansing and girls’ menstruation.

There are many other tribes which induce pain as part of coming of age. But come to think of it, these tribes are not that different from modern societies. Human seems to have an innate yearning for self-inflicted pain. Hazing, for example, is a common initiation rite for fraternities around the world. Others choose to adorn their bodies with tattoos no matter how long and painful the needle will prick the skin. Pain is prerequisite to achievement wherever you come from. It simply takes many forms and various meanings for different societies.

Want to travel cheap? Get $500 Airline Gift Cards.

For a few days, people drop their daily routines to celebrate whatever it is that their culture values. Festivals are a great time for tourists to travel. It is during festivities when locals are friendliest and most inviting. Everyone lets their guard down and simply indulge in fun activities. Festivals are a great way not only to have fun with the activities, but also to understand a foreign country’s history, culture and beliefs.

Monkey Buffet Festival: Thailand
November is a festive time for Thailand. In the province of Lopburi, a feast of fruits is prepared for hundreds of monkeys. It is Thai belief that the province was given by the famous hero Rama to Hanuman, the Monkey King. This legend brought tourists and locals together in a friendly encounter with the numerous monkeys that live near San Phra Kan and Phra Prang Sam Yot – famous and historic structures in Lopburi. The monkeys are playful but harmless.

Songkran: Thailand
Songkran is Thai New Year, which falls on April 13 to 15 according to astrology. Being Thailand’s hottest time of the year, the tradition of water-throwing is widely practiced. Tourists and locals all hold water guns and buckets of water to throw at anyone they please, may it be a friend or a total stranger. The great thing about this festival is that almost everyone on the streets is willing to participate. So it is rare that a stranger gets mad if he/she gets wet by a total stranger. So if you are a tourist walking in Thailand at this time of the year, suspect anyone to throw buckets of water at you.

Holi: India
Like any other festival, Holi or the Festival of Colors in India is rooted to an interesting legend. This is celebrated to welcome spring season in India with goodness, bounty and health. The story behind thisfestival involves Prince Prahlad who, despite being the son of the demon King, is devout to Lord Vishnu. His disobedience to his father and loyalty to Lord Vishnu gave him protection from various death encounters. At one attempt to kill the prince, the King ended up burning his sister, Holika, instead. Thus, on the first day of the celebration, Holika is burned in a big bonfire. The second day is much more fun as people throw colored powder and water at each other. Traditionally, the colored powder comes from medicinal plants important in keeping people from getting sick in Indian spring weather. Today, however, these medicinal powders are replaced with synthetic dye that can sometimes be harmful on the skin.

El Colacho: Spain
Whole of Spain celebrate Corpus Crhisti, but only in Castrillo de Murcia do people celebrate by baby-jumping. This tradition is centuries old and its significance is quite unclear. A grown man, dressed in something that resembles a matador suit or a colorful Elvis attire, jumps over a few babies lying on the ground. These unknowing babies are volunteered by their parents to be jumped over, but Spaniards are also inviting to tourists who have their babies with them during the festival.

These are only a few of thousands of inviting festivals around the world. The next time you wish to travel, you might want to consider peeking at another country’s festival calendar. It will surely give you a memorable visit. And your tour does not have to be expensive. Get $500 Airline Gift Certificates to ease the budget burdens of traveling!

When you hear about the best sunset, a picture-perfect beach comes to mind. Yes, fine white sand, clear sparkling seawater and swaying palm trees are bound to give a great sunset. But aside from beaches, there are a lot of other places that looks glorious when glazed with a golden sunset.

The Grand Canyon in Colorado, Arizona is amazing in daylight but incredibly dramatic as the sun goes down. The light from the setting sun makes the rocky canyon even redder than usual. Also, the lines on the rocks are even more accentuated. This is a must-see. Click here to fly to Phoenix, AZ for free!

Alaska has places set particularly for sunset viewing. The mountains and rivers assure a breathtaking sunset. What makes sunsets so remarkable in Alaska is that the waters can be so still that it makes very clear reflections. You’re eyes will be fooled into seeing double as the reflections are so clear down to the small details.

If you’re looking for a romantic sunset, Paris will not fail you. The silhouette of the glorious Eiffel Tower stands out as the sky starts to get dark. The tower also starts to light up as soon as it gets too dark. The beauty and grandeur of the tower at sundown is breathtakingly romantic. Paris may be romantic and elegant, but it does not have to be expensive. Fly free to Paris!

The pyramids of Giza in Egypt also make remarkable silhouettes at sunset. The pyramids create incredibly perfect outlines.

Greece has a distinct indescribable glow to it. Greece has everything. The beaches and mountains are exemplary. Architecture is also remarkable in Santorini. That distinctive blue domes on white walls are gorgeous. All of these make up the world’s best sunset in Santorini Greece. Being on a mountain, with a view of many clean white structures, the sunset really makes you feel like you’re walking on clouds.

These are great views that you cannot miss. Don’t stop with pictures; see these sites for yourself! Click here to get $500 Airline Gift Certificates!