Interesting facts, weird facts and random facts from around the world

Rajathan, India

Rats are pretty special over at the Karni Mata Temple in India. Yep, more than 20,000 of the furry little buggers scurry around the temple, where they are nurtured and worshipped. It dates back to the 14th century, when the Goddess Karni said her family members would never die, and instead they would be reborn as rats. Today, tourists come in droves to see them. Watch your step. 

Okayama, Japan

9,000 half-naked men gallivanting in loincloths? Ah, that'll be the Hadaka Matsuri Festival. This naked fest is an eccentric 500-year-old Japanese tradition, with thousands of de-robed men grappling to be the proud owner of some 'shingi', or 'lucky sticks'. Thrust the sticks upright (oo-er!) and you'll be blessed with a year of non-stop happiness. Pass us a loincloth then.

Shenzen, China

For dinner with a difference, head to China where toilet restaurants are bog standard (sorry). In Taiyuan, diners perch on ceramic loos, eat spaghetti bolognese out of bidets, drink coffee from urinals and lean back on poo-shaped cushions. Even better, the Modern Toilet is a restaurant chain, so if Taiyuan isn't on your travel list you might prefer Hong Kong or Beijing.

New Jersey, USA

What makes you buy in a certain area? Good bars? Decent schools? A 65ft model elephant? That's what one developer did in NJ, and Lucy the Margate Elephant has been standing proud since 1881, trying to lure investors. She's been used as a hotel and tavern, and is now recognised on the National Register of Historic Places. We're hoping a giant elephant will pop up in Dalston sometime soon – great pub potential. 

The Philippines

Love your home, but feeling fed up with your annoying neighbours? Adopt the Filipino method of dealing with them. It's called bayanihan – the practice of picking up an entire house and moving it to a new location. Most commonly used if there's a chance of landslides, it's also a good way to deal with incessantly loud music. Enlist your friends' help, and up sticks.

Oaxaca, Mexico

Oops, vegetable ignorance coming up. There we were thinking radishes only came in little balls from Sainos. Turns out that this root veg is large and important, and the 'Night of the Radishes' is the most anticipated day in Oaxaca. Every Xmas eve vendors carve their radishes into little figurines, hoping to lure customers. Apparently the queues to see the completed sculptures are massive – like Madame Tussauds, but way better.

Las Vegas, USA

Church = dull. Converted barn = dull. Town hall = dull. They say marriage is a rollercoaster, and that's certainly the case in Las Vegas. Ditching the traditional options, couples can get hitched on the Big Apple coaster while travelling at 67mph. It's cheap too (well, in wedding terms) – US$600, including a minister. If we ever needed a reason to get married, this is it. We dooooooooooooooo.

Talkeetna, Alaska, USA

Sometimes, when we don't like people, we feel like sending them a massive dog dump in an envelope. (We never do of course, it's all chat.) If you're the same, you should visit the town of Talkeetna during their Moose Dropping Festival. Each year the locals gather up moose turds and then hurl them from hot air balloons onto targets below. We don't know if the targets are people, but it would be amoosing if they were. (Yeah, that happened.)

San Diego, USA

We're not the judgemental type. But you are a massive weirdo if you're one of the 24,000 people on the waiting list for McKamey Manor, an interactive haunted house in San Diego. A crystal maze for horror fans, the eight-hour tours of the blood-drenched manor include 'activities' that have reduced America's toughest to tears. Even writing about it is pure torture.

Llanwrtyd Wells, Wales

People travel the world to find the best dive sites with the most colourful fish, but everyone's missing a trick. You see, the best snorkelling opportunities are right here in the UK, in the town of Llanwrtyd Wells in Wales. Every August the town hosts the Bog Snorkelling World Championships, a wade through a deep mud- and water-filled trench. Parents gather along the side of the bog, cheering on their athletic thirtysomething kids. It's like the school swimming gala, minus the verruca socks.

Beijing, China

Here's some grown-up advice: don't invest in property or shares – they're dull. Instead, head to Beijing on holiday and swing by one of their walnut shops, where the healthy food items are selling for tens of thousands of dollars EACH (and reselling for double the price just a year later). Wealthy Chinese men like to stroke their nuts with their hands (wahay!) – it's to stimulate blood flow through the body, and bring luck in life, apparently.

Setenil de las Bodegas, Spain

Things that live under rocks: 1) worms 2) 3,000 people in the Spanish town of Setenil de las Bodegas. Wherever you head you'll have this giant slab hanging over you; it blocks the light on the narrow streets and lines the walls of the restaurants. You don't need to be a cagouled geologist to visit – the town is also famous for chorizo, jam and Andalucian wine.

Manila, Philippines

We're always up for trying new food, but that pretty bowl isn't fooling us. Over in the Philippines the local delicacy is called balut, that's DEVELOPING DUCK EMBRYO. The eggs are savoured for their balance of texture and flavours – the broth surrounding the embryo is sipped from the egg, before the yolk and young chick are eaten. If that sounds a bit much, just wash it down with beer. That's what the locals do.

Sark Island, UK

Horse racing = old news. We're placing our bets on sheep racing being the next big thing. The Sheep Racing Festival is an annual event on the Channel Island of Sark, where Guernsey's fittest sheep compete in the Grand National of furry white farm animals. The jockeys (ok, teddies) are dressed in racing silks, and guide the sheep to the finish line. You might make a few bob too –  'Dodgy Dave' offers decent odds, and you can retreat to the baa for a consolation drink if you lose. 

Hallstatt, China

The real geographers among you may know that Hallstatt is in fact a lakeside town in Austria. But Austria is really quite far to travel if you live in China, so instead a Chinese construction company has decided to replicate the picturesque town, along with churches and clocktowers, as a holiday home alternative for wealthy Chinese. The building work has slowed, but when it does finally open there'll be horse drawn carriages and everything! Next up: Blackpool (we hope).

Dorset, England

Heading south? Swing by the Bottle Inn pub in Marshwood, Dorset, where punters eat stinging nettles in one raucous, beer-fuelled event. Competitors travel from Australia to take part in the nettle-munching World Championships – last year a record-breaking winner ate 80ft-worth of the evil green weed and was awarded £100 for his efforts. Apparently it tastes like a mixture of cow pat and spinach. We'll stick with the pork scratchings, ta.

Jiangsu, China

We all enjoy a cheeky stripper now and then, don't we? DON'T WE? Oh, right. Er, anyway, it's nothing compared to the people of Jiangsu in China, who love strippers so much they book swarms of the scantily clad ladies to perform at their loved ones' FUNERALS. The aim is to bring the the deceased person good fortune in the afterlife, by drawing the biggest possible crowd to mourn for them. An Iceland buffet would work just the same, surely.

Savolinna, Finland

Ahhh, the Nokia 5110 – we miss the good old days of Snake and battery life. If you're anything like us, your old mobiles will be gathering dust in a draw of tangled cables. Here's a better way to treat them: hurling them as far as you can in the World Mobile Phone Throwing Championships in Savolinna. People travel for miles to take part and it's all very serious – there are no doping tests (phew) but you will be disqualified if you're considered a danger to the public. ACT NORMAL.