Challenge the limits of travel! Explore blush-inducing adult attractions

Text by MOOK Scenic Spots Family Travel Life Network, compiled and reported by Chen Guanxin

 

Have you ever come across a tourist attraction that made your face flush and heart race while traveling the world? The most taboo subject of all—sex—is actually on display for all to see? That’s right! In South Korea, Russia, and the Netherlands, there are sex museums or red-light districts that cater to people’s imaginations and curiosity about sex. Next time you visit these places, why not set aside some time to explore these unique sites for an unconventional travel experience.

 

On Jeju Island, there is a road beloved by tourists. Whenever vehicles reach this uphill stretch, even if the engine is turned off, the car will seemingly roll uphill on its own. This road is known as the Mystery Road. Along the way, shops offer jars for visitors to try the fun of watching them roll uphill. Whether it’s an optical illusion or caused by magnetic fields, visitors will have to come and experience it for themselves.

 

Near the Mystery Road, there is a sculpture park themed around sex. The park boldly displays genitalia and various humorous erotic artworks. Whether it’s a realistic simulation of car sex or faucets shaped like genitalia, all attract visitors’ attention. The indoor area also features art paintings and the sale of adult novelty items, all displayed unabashedly, making some visitors blush. At night, outdoor fountains combined with evening lighting create an artistic ambiance in the park.

There are many sex-themed museums around the world, but the one in St. Petersburg is rather average in terms of collection size and uniqueness. Most of the exhibits are relatively cheap trinkets, and the place is actually a clinic, with displays that are little more than waiting room decorations. However, it gains legendary status because of one “treasure”—the penis of Rasputin, a part of St. Petersburg’s lore.

 

This monk, who wielded immense influence in the imperial court during the final years of the tsarist era, indulged in drunken debauchery and lawlessness in St. Petersburg, wielding great influence over the royal family and becoming the target of hatred from many citizens and nobles who wanted him gone. After he was murdered, his penis was immediately cut off, becoming the object of later generations’ curiosity and study, as legend had it that it was the key to attracting countless devout female followers during his lifetime. The “exhibit” later ended up in the hands of a doctor, which is why today we can see this 30-centimeter-long grayish-white preserved object in a glass jar at this clinic. It offers a glimpse into the dramatic and eerie fragments of the late Russian Empire.

 

The unassuming facade of this museum often causes people to walk right past it, unaware of the wonders inside. Though the museum isn’t very large, its “all-inclusive” nature is one of its major selling points. From erotic paintings on scrolls, books, and porcelain to human figurines made of clay, bronze, ivory, and marble, it vividly showcases humanity’s most primal desires.

 

“Sexuality” is an innate instinct, but once everyone puts on the mask of morality and ethics, it becomes something unspoken and hidden, allowing desire to fester as fodder for pornography. This museum takes that as its theme, claiming its mission is to return sex to its original simplicity. Though this claim may be hard to believe, given the abundance of BDSM and orgy photos that are still quite embarrassing, no one can deny the existence of these realities. Regardless of your views, the world’s first erotic-themed museum is definitely a conversation starter.

Few countries in the world promote their red-light districts as flagship attractions, and Amsterdam is one of them. Just look around—there are red-light district-related products everywhere, even on postcards featuring attractive women. The red-light district is most concentrated in the alleys near the old church and the Chinatown area, stretching across the entire city center and even sporadically appearing westward toward the Singel Canal. Visiting the red-light district in Amsterdam doesn’t require sneaking around—it’s an official part of the tourist itinerary, and you’ll often see tour guides with flags explaining the sights to their groups.

 

For the people of Amsterdam, sex workers are just another ordinary profession, no different from working in a bank or shop. To prevent the industry from being controlled by organized crime, it has been made legal and public. Sex workers receive regular health check-ups, menstrual allowances, and other social benefits, and their union leaders are even invited to sit in the House of Representatives. Dutch sex workers are self-employed, renting small window displays and rooms where they pose seductively, waiting for customers, without soliciting on the streets. Once a price is agreed upon, they draw the curtains to conduct business. If you’re just curious, it’s best to visit at night when the red lights bathe the streets in a hazy glow and the women in the windows are dazzlingly alluring. As long as you don’t take photos, you’re free to feast your eyes.