Learn Something

Traveling is fun, inside and outside the country, but if you’re going on vacation you should definitely know what you can get away with. Today Mental Floss and I are dropping knowledge about places to avoid and places to visit based on…

Interesting Local laws

Avoid: Thailand
Because: You can’t go commando. It’s illegal to leave your house if you aren’t wearing underwear. It is legal, however, to pay $10,000 to shoot someone, apparently. The guy who wrote Hostel based it on a Thai website claiming to book torture vacations.

Visit: Hawaii
Because: You’ll never run into David Blaine, or any amateur magician for that matter. It’s illegal for citizens to place coins in one’s ears according to state law. However, there is nothing on the books about levitating, so…

Avoid: England
Because: All English males over the age of 14 are to carry out 2 hours of longbow practice a week with their clergy supervising. It’s an old law, but it would be useful if William Wallace ever attacked again.

Visit: Australia
And Demand: Your horse walk into the bar. By law, bars are required to stable, water and feed patrons’ horses. However, they are not required to laugh at your Steve Irwin jokes, no matter how funny they are.

Avoid: Singapore
Because: It’s Singapore. But also because oral sex is illegal, unless you justify it as foreplay, which we all know it isn’t. “Whoops, looks like I’m done! My bad. Goodnight, honey.”

Visit: Swaziland
And Demand: The military strip show. If a woman dares to wear pants, official law states it’s the right of any soldier to rip the pants off her, and tear them to pieces. Wow, what a forward-looking nation!

Avoid: Israel
Because: If there’s a party in your nose, your fingers aren’t invited. Picking your nose on the Sabbath is against the law which sucks because, personally, my Saturdays are normally spent with a finger 2-knuckles-deep in my face.

Visit: Connecticut
Because: You can trust the food. In order for a pickle to officially be designated a pickle, state law mandates that it must bounce. Also a law in Connecticut: speed limit on the highway = 65 mph.

As always, more knowledge at MentalFloss.com