Best Travel Destination

Have a look at the all time best travel destination countries. Those places have managed repeatedly pull visitors year after year, regardless of economic issues. The list of countries was based on the number of tourists registered entering those countries over the last 5 years.

France
France averages 76 million visitors a year. The nation of France has repeatedly topped the list of the most visited European countries. From the rural wine making area of Tuscany to the hedonistic life found on the southern coast, France offers the visitor luxury and charm in a single package. France averages 76 million visitors a year.

Spain
Spain averages 55.6 million visitors a year. A firm favorite with families seeking an inexpensive beach holiday, Spain remains one of the top tourist destinations in the world. In recent years much has been done to clean up the reputation that many of the southern coastal regions gained during the package holiday era of the 1980s. Spain averages 55.6 million visitors a year.

 United States
United States averages 49.4 million visitors a year. Truly no other country in the world can offer such a varied experience for the visitor. The southern states supply some of the best known attractions such as Disney Land while the midwest offers unparalleled natural beauty; the modern metropolitan centers of the north such as New York offer the visitor an urban adventure. United States averages 49.4 million visitors a year.

China
China averages 46.8 million visitors a year. For holiday makers interested in culture and history, China makes for an enthralling destination. With its brash and boisterous cities and its obvious commitment to its heritage, China supplies a fascinating holiday.

Italy
Italy averages 36.5 million visitors a year. Rich cultures and outstanding natural beauty makes Italy a favorite with many tourists. Classic cities such as Venice and Rome typify the uniqueness of a visit to Italy. The southern coast and islands offer exceptional beach holidays.

United Kingdom
United Kingdom averages  30 million visitors a year. Arguably sporting some of the most stunning natural countryside in the world, the UK offers a chance for the visitor to enjoy not only modern urban life in cities such as London and Manchester, but to taste the English summer in areas such as Kent, Devon and the Lake District.

Mexico
Mexico averages 21.9 million visitors a year. Much beloved by American tourists, Mexico offers that little taste of the exotic just a short step across the border from the USA. Spicy cuisine, lively nightlife and friendly locals make Mexico a favorite getaway destination for many US residents.

Germany
Germany averages 21.5 million visitors a year. Unlike most of the destinations mentioned above, Germany is not a traditional summer vacation destination. Instead, Germany makes for an intriguing mix of natural countryside and cities with individual character such as Berlin and Munich.

Canada
Canada averages 20.3 million visitors a year. While the southern USA enjoys the Mexican border to supply it with a local holiday destination, the Northern part of the USA exploits its proximity to the Canadian border. A fantastic country for those who enjoy winter sports and the great outdoors.

Austria
Austria averages 20 million visitors a year.A destination which presents a refined face to the visitor, from its architecture to its art galleries, Austria is a leading cultural center. Famed for its love of the arts, including ballet, opera and theater, many leading European centers of art can be found in Austria.

Female Fantasies

We all have fantasies. Some of our fantasies run wild while we’re kids. When we become adults, the fantasies linger with us. Who would not like to fantasize about a dream and fairy tale wedding? Better yet…who would not dream about winning the lottery and not going to work? We all do.

Raise your hand if you recognize 1 or 2. Remember what Freud once said: only unsatisfied people have sexual fantasies.

Winning the lottery:
75/100 women fantasize regularly about winning the lottery. Many of them admit that they play weekly lotto to advance their chances of winning. Some have also grouped together to multiply their chances of winning.

Prince-Charming:
85% of the survey unmarried women fantasize about marrying a prince charming with the right physique. Some even desired to find a husband that will let them stop working.

A Day in the Life of a Man:
40/100 women wondered and fantasized about what it would be like to live a life of the opposite sex. They tried to understand men’s actions and tried to understand why they act the way they do. This situation is similar to Beyoncé’s song…If I Were a Boy….

Lesbianism/Bisexualism:
Many women have also admitted that they fantasized about being a lesbian. These individuals were all straight; dating or married. I believe it was just the social influences and stereotypes which brought out such fantasies. They agreed.

No Responsibilities:
Women have a huge load of work to do. Many of them work, care for kids, husband and the house. They cook, wash, clean and read bedtime stories to their kids. When feeling tired, some women dream about being free of all responsibilities.

Emotional Needs:
Women tend to be emotional and intimate. They are overly concerned about others, including their love.

Beauty:
Women worry about their beauty. They want to make sure that their faces and body are perfect. They sometimes compare themselves with other women, including celebrities. This is in tune with Freud’s quote on non-satisfaction.

Being in Control:
Almost all of the women surveyed believed that they thought about being in control and wanting to have more power than they at the time had. They even dreamed about teaching someone a lesson or two about morals. Rightfully so, I may add.

Getaway island:
Massages and sitting on the beach with a tropical drink and with no one to bother them were a quote taken from someone being surveyed. Stress sometimes gets to people in the wrong ways. Fantasies are a way to deal with the stress.

First Time/First Kiss:
Women, who never slept with a guy, fantasize about their first time or kiss. Who does not? Men do it all the time. It’s natural for heaven’s sake. Movies like Juno would not be popular otherwise. People easily connect.

People Who Were Buried Alive

Everybody is scared of getting buried alive and the following people had these nightmares transformed into reality when they were declared dead prematurely.

Virginia Macdonald
Virginia Macdonald died in 1851 after she had been ill for a long time. After she was buried, her mother was sure of the fact that Virginia was not dead. Unfortunately, when the coffin was taken out, it was found that the poor girl’s hands were bitten and the body showed other traces of having been buried alive.

Madame Blunden
Madame Blunden was declared dead in 1896 and was buried under a school. The coffin was opened up after complaints from children about noises and those who were around managed to watch her take her last breath.

Collins
In 1886, New York Times carried an article about a young girl named Collins who died suddenly and was then buried. When her body was being shifted, it was discovered that her knees were pulled till her chin, her arm was turned in an unnatural manner and her face was twisted in such a manner that it was obvious she had been through dreadful torture.

Unknown man
The Daily Telegraph carried an article in 1889 about a man who had been buried in Grenoble. Because he stayed intoxicated for 20 hours, it was assumed that he was dead. However, when the sexton was placing the thick coffin in the grave, he heard loud moans and frantic knocks. By the time he opened it up, the man had died and his head was badly mutilated.

Unknown man
The Sunday Times carried an article in 1838 about a man in Tonneins who was buried alive. When the coffin was being lowered into the Earth, the grave-digger heard loud noises and sure enough, the man had been declared dead prematurely.

Unknown woman
The British Medical Journal carried a piece in 1877 about a woman who was buried because she was thought to be dead when in fact; she was in some sort of a trance. When the grave was opened a few days later in order to place another body in, the woman’s body was found to be mutilated.

Miss Hockwalt
Miss Hockwalt belonged to the elite section of the society in Dayton during 1884. She was thought to be dead after being found on a chair, looking lifeless and ‘dead’. She was then buried. The grave was opened up later and the lady’s hair had been torn out and her skin was bitten.

Mary Norah Best
Mary Norah Best was seventeen years old when she was declared dead in 1871. It has been believed that many people would have benefited from her death which is why she was buried. In 1881, it was found that Mary’s skeleton was ‘sitting up’ and the undertaker realized that the poor girl had woken up and managed to break open the casket.

Unknown Man
The New York Times article carried an article on a man from Asheville who was declared dead after being sick for several months. When the coffin was being moved, it was opened up and much to the horror of the man’s relatives, his hair was pulled out.

Madame Bobin
In 1901, Madame Bobin supposedly contracted yellow fever and was pregnant at the time. After she was buried, a nurse said that the body was quite warm and that the muscles were not rigid. The coffin was opened up and found that she had given birth to her baby in the coffin who had also suffocated to death.

Facts About Death Worth Knowing

Death is always sad but if you look hard enough, it can be quite interesting. This list may be macabre but it is also quite fascinating!

Economic Burial

Promessa is a Swedish company which offers economic burials, if that’s what the family of the deceased wants. They will first immerse the body in a certain chemical in order to freeze-dry it and then attach a machine to it which pulverizes it. The end result is that the body turns to dust.

Eating Enzymes

There are certain enzymes in our body which kick-start the digestion process and keep it going till the waste is ready to be removed. These are the same enzymes that devour your body on the third day of your death. The bacteria attacks the dead cells and a certain gas is released which adds weight to the body

Dead Cells

When the embryo is developing, a number of cells have to kill themselves. This is programmed and quite routine and happens so that the child is born with normal and not webbed feet.

Dead American People Are Not Environmentally Friendly

Americans that are buried in the U.S.A are not too eco-friendly. This is because about massive volumes of formaldehyde, ethanol and methanol are used to embalm the body. This fluid seeps into the soil and destroys it bit by bit. Cremations, on the other hand, release harmful noxious gases into the air which only enhances the holes in the ozone layer.

Devoured by Vultures

There is a certain group of people called Zoroastrians in India which place their family members’ dead bodies on the terrace. This is done so that they are eaten by vultures and so that the body is given back to nature.

21 grams

An experiment was carried out by a doctor in Massachusetts in 1907 with the help of a deathbed that was specially designed for the occasion. It was found that the human body loses 21 grams almost instantly. People believe that the soul weighs 21 grams and when it leaves the body, it loses that much weight.

Long Hair and Nails

Even though it is not known for sure, people believe that a person’s hair and nails keep growing long after his death. This is because they are both made of keratin and dead cells and therefore, the death of the body does not affect them all that much.

Lack of Oxygen

The most prominent cause of death is lack of oxygen, no matter what the scenario is. However, it’s a fact that you cannot kill yourself by holding your breath. When the brain does not get enough oxygen, the muscles start competing with each other and literally spasm out of control which is what kills the person.

Soapy Corpse

When a corpse is buried and if the combination of the temperature and humidity in the air is just right, certain tissues in the body will transform into a substance whose texture will resemble that of soap. This happens because of the damp environment and the lack of oxygen in the air

Get Buried in Outer Space

A US based company can send the remains of your loved ones into space as long as you are ready to pay them a hefty fee. A memorial service will be held and you can watch the launch.

Bizarre Religious Traditions

While most traditions have been accepted over the years, the following are quite bizarre and will shock you!

Iyomante Ritual

This tradition is native to the Ainu people and they carry out the slaughter of such bears that are hibernating in their caves. They retrieve her cubs and raise them for a few years after which they are choked to death as well. They do this because they believe that bears are god-like creatures that walk amongst us.

Living with the Dead

This tradition is carried out by an ethnic group of Indonesia. When a person dies, they wrap up the corpse and keep it in the house. They believe that this will help preserve the soul that stays intact till the body is buried.

Masai Spitting

The Masai Tribe is native to parts of Tanzania and Kenya and their traditions are quite bizarre in the sense that they greet each other on religious holidays by spitting on each other. Also, the men take a new born into their arms and spit on it repeatedly. The belief behind this is that if they don’t, the child will be on the receiving end of some bad luck for the rest of their lives.

Feeding the Dead

It was recently discovered that Romans, in the past, would have meals with the corpses of loved ones and also feed the food to them. They did so with the help of such pipes that were attached to their organs. They then poured food, honey and wine through it.

Yanomamö Ash Eating

The Yanomamö are such tribes which belong to parts of Brazil and Venezuela. Because they try to stay away from modern life and stick to their traditions, many of them are still in use. When a family member of the tribe dies, they burn the body thoroughly and then eat the ashes.

Hanging Coffins

People of China and some known as the Toraja follow this particular religious tradition wherein they bury their family members and then hang them over some cliffs. If you stand at the bottom of any of these cliffs, you will be able to see a clear dotting of brown and black entities which are infact coffins. They focus on this belief mainly when children and elites pass away.

Mourning of Muharram

On the death anniversary of Husayn Ibn Ali, a number of groups consisting of Shia muslims go out into the streets with whips attached with knives and blades and beat themselves up repeatedly. Others may also cut their own heads off with these knives. While it may seem cruel, it is a tradition that has been passed over from generations and is followed voluntarily by these groups.

Satere-Mawe Initiation Rite
The Satere-Mawe people ask their young boys to wear a glove which is covered and inserted with such bullet ants that are drugged. They are known to have extremely painful stings and the boy can only remove it after 10 minutes. He must repeat in for several months till the family tells him it is okay to stop.

Baby Tossing

This tradition is followed by families living in Solapur in India. They are required to take their babies till the terrace of 50 foot tower and throw them off. People holding sheets at the foot of the tower will catch it safely. This ensures that the baby has a long and healthy life.

Eating Death

The Aghoris follow this tradition and delve into the practice of cannibalism. They also live solely in cremation grounds and sustain themselves as well as they can from the resources available there.