Ever dreamed of packing up everything and moving to another country? Here are the most livable cities in the world, according to a study by The Economist.
21.07.2023 - 07:56 / roughguides.com
Sex museums are nothing new. Dozens were erected across Europe during the Swinging Sixties when the sexual revolution was in full swing. These days the orgy of sex museums has slowed to a mere mouthful, though they have been stimulated by a new breed of ‘erotic’ museum that aims to steer more towards art than pure physicality. Sex looks like it is going to be back en vogue this year with the release of a certain film, so join us as we go in search of the world's finest sex museum.
In sophisticated Paris they go all posh on matters of the flesh. Here it’s not about sex, but the erotic. The Museum of Eroticism, though, lies in the shady red light district of Pigalle in the shadow of the Sacré-Cœur. Opened in 1997, the exhibits swirl around the erotic art collections of antique dealer Alain Plumey and teacher Jo Khalifa. The eclectic range of art spreads across five floors and hails from as far afield as Africa and Japan, with everything from ancient religious works, though to the avant garde, with temporary exhibitions too. The film Polissons et Galipettes sheds pornographic shorts light on the nefarious Parisian maisons closes.
Maybe it was inevitable in a land so cold and dark for much of the year, but the citizens of Iceland seems to have developed a fascination with the phallus. That is if the Icelandic Phallological Museum is anything to go by. This whopper lays claims to hoarding the world’s largest collection of penises and ‘penile parts’, with over 200 male members. There may be one human penis here (you honestly don’t want to know the story), but it’s not all about man, as there is flaccid flesh from myriad species, from polar bears to whales (they’ve got over 50 whale specimens alone).
Europe’s sex capital was always going to have a sex museum wasn’t it? In fact it sports an impressive pair. You'll find the first in the heart of the red light district in De Wallen, but the stand out is the, er, slightly more upmarket temple to sex on bustling Damrak. It has stood proudly here since 1985 and is actually fairly tame, a way of getting a taste of this sin city without actually getting involved in anything too seedy. The names of the exhibition spaces say it all: Casanova Gallery, Fanny Hill Street and a hall dedicated to the father of sadism, the Marquis de Sade.
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Opened in 1997 the Erotic Museum of Barcelona is slap bang in the middle of the city on La Rambla. It promises ‘Sensuality, sexuality, provocation… Fun!’. It’s all here, too, from the sultry world of the Kama Sutra, right through to samples of erotic art that have been banned in Japan. As well as international exhibits the 800-strong collection also delves into the murky world of Spanish pornographic cinema.
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Ever dreamed of packing up everything and moving to another country? Here are the most livable cities in the world, according to a study by The Economist.
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AirHelp, the online service that files complaints against airlines on behalf of passengers entitled to compensation for air delays or cancellations, knows a thing or two about air travel. Because it’s hard for the average person to understand air passenger rights and pursue a legal claim when they’ve been wronged, AirHelp is always going toe-to-toe with airlines and airports—and reveals once a year which ones that treat their passengers for the better (or worse).
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Review and booking website Tripadvisor (SmarterTravel’s parent company) is out with its annual list of the most popular tourist attractions in the world. It’s dominated by iconic attractions, some of which you’re guaranteed to wait in a two-hour line for unless you can purchase skip-the-line passes. It’s also worth noting that almost every attraction on the list is in Europe.
For the sixth year in a row, Finland has claimed the top spot in the World Happiness Report. The annual report, compiled by the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, surveys residents in over 150 countries to determine which nations are the happiest.
As a 31-year-old woman, I've been on most dating apps and have been on more dates than I can remember. During the pandemic, I even went on a "first date" with someone where we ordered food for each other and FaceTimed. He cut out paper hearts and taped them to the wall behind him.
Germany’s thriving capital has been voted the tenth coolest city in the world thanks to its cutting-edge art scene, wild nightlife, multiculturalism, incredible museums and rebirth into the dynamic cosmopolitan powerhouse it is today. And as each day goes by, Berlin seems to only get cooler.