Oddly enough, setting a man on fire isn’t necessarily a bad thing, on the contrary, it’s actually considered curative.

Although I wasn’t able to learn much about this strange medical procedure, fire treatment is apparently very popular during the winter months, in Chinese traditional hospitals. People believe this will keep them safe from illnesses like the flu and common cold.

The piece of cloth is sprinkled with flammable substance, probably alcohol,then set on fire and put-out with another cloth. It isn’t painful at all, and according to a video I found on Youtube, fire treatment is also a great way to lose weight.

Doubling as a pet and fancy brooch, the jewel-studded beetle is a common accessory in countries like Mexico. They’re not too popular in America, though.

An American woman found this out the hard way, when her living piece of jewelry was confiscated, upon her entry back into the States, from Mexico. The dazzling bug was freely crawling on the woman’s sweater, but the gold chain attached to a safety pin kept it from venturing too far.

Covered in gold and pricey gemstones, the blinged-out insect was confiscated by pest-control, because its owner didn’t have the proper documents. She received no fine, but she’ll definitely regret spending money on live jewelry.

Jewel-studded beetles and other bugs are considered common in Mexico and have been for centuries.

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I meant to start this post kind of like this: “Of all the idiotic things I’ve seen in my life…” But MatthewG15 has been picked-on enough on his Flickr profile. So while others call him a douche or a retard, I just want to point out that he didn’t actually hurt anyone (but himself).

Our boy Matthew probably ran out of spots to tattoo so he decided to cross the line and tattoo his face. Apparently he couldn’t afford a pair of real glasses, so he tattooed one instead. Ok, you’re right, that was mean of me, but I’m thinking a real pair would have been cheaper and more practical. Not to mention these will look like crap when he’s a wrinkly old man. Maybe he’s trying to compete with Zombie Boy…

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All funerals are sad and creepy, but they’re way better than feeding the corpse to a bunch of hungry eagles.

Sky burials are often practiced in the mountains of Tibet, both for religious and practical reasons. Basically, the corpse is placed on a mountain top and sliced open in various places, to attract the birds of prey circling above. They’d probably feast on it anyway, but an invitation like that doesn’t hurt.

Most Tibetans are Buddhists and believe in rebirth. Once a person dies, their body is considered nothing more than an empty vessels that needs to disposed of. Since the ground is often as hard as rock and wood and fire are precious resources, feeding nature’s creatures is a practical choice. I know it looks grotesque, but to Buddhists this is a last sign of generosity by the deceased, offering his body as nourishment for other living creatures.

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Every year, South Korean special-forces undergo serious winter training to strengthen their minds and bodies and to make sure the cold doesn’t affect them on live missions.

More than 200 rangers take part in the grueling winter training session, in Pyeonghang, 180 km east of Seoul. They do gymnastics, swim in icy water, hurl snow at their bare chests, build snow shelters and sprint, all at temperatures of under -30 degrees Celsius. The extreme training lasts for nine days.

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That’s right, at Ansan military camp for children it doesn’t matter if you’re a boy or a girl, they’ll make a manly man out of you.

Located about 25 miles from the capital of Seoul, the Ansan military camp gives civilians the chance to strengthen their minds and bodies, by training in extreme conditions. The camp is ran by retired Korean marines who don’t care if you’re in primary school or in college, they’ll have you carrying logs and exercising half naked in the snow.

You can choose to withstand the torture training at Ansan camp for periods ranging between three and fourteen days, depending on how tough you think you are. Check out some more photos of children training at Ansan, we posted a while back.

Photos by REUTERS via Telegraph.co.uk

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They say love knows no boundaries, but this is taking it a little too far. A Vietnamese man has been sleeping next to his wife’s corpse for the last five years.

Le Van, a 55-year-old man from Quang Nam province, Vietnam, lost his wife in 2003. Because he couldn’t go to sleep at night without hugging his beloved spouse, he slept on top of her grave for about 20 months. When he couldn’t stand the rain and wind anymore, he decided to dig a tunnel into the grave, so he could sleep with his wife.

When the kids heard his crazy plan, they did everything they could to stop him, so Le Van had to think of another way he could cuddle up to his wife at night. In 2004 he unearthed her remains, wrapped them in pieces of paper and a clay mould and put a dummy mask on her face. The man has been sleeping next to his dead wife ever since. Read More »

To make sure they squeeze some money out of them, young Chinese beggars have begun clinging to the legs of their victims.

Picture this: you’re walking down the street, minding your own business when this helpless little beggar girl comes up to you and asks you to buy a flower. You say something like “no thanks” and move on. But wait, one of your legs seems to be immobilized. You look down at the leg and see that same girl wrapped around it saying she isn’t going to let go until you buy a flower. This sort of harassment takes place more and more often on the streets of China’s major cities.

Now, considering there’s rarely any police around to help you with the issue, there are two things you can do. One way to resolve this would be to kick her with your other leg, but what kind of animal hits a child, right? So your only other option is to actually buy the flower and see to your business. Maybe you think there are other ways to escape the grip of these persistent beggars, but those already trapped by one say they don’t let go no matter how hard you try to reason with them or even hit them.

So the obvious question is: are these clinging beggars to blame? I would be inclined to say no, because they’re just doing what they must to survive. There are criminals that send them to “work” every day and if they don’t earn their keep, they’re in serious trouble.

via bbs.163.com

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These are the famous “fantasy coffins” used by the Ga Tribe, on the coast of Ghana to both mourn and celebrate the death of a beloved family member or friend.

The tradition of burying people in strangely-shaped coffins began roughly 50 years ago when a fisherman was set to rest in a funeral casket shaped like a fish. Ever since then photographers have been buried in camera-shaped coffins, people who like to drink in caskets shaped like beer bottles and avid smokers, you guessed it, in cigarette-like wooden coffins.

Families of the deceased spend enormous amounts of cash on these intricate caskets, sometimes even as much as $600. Sure, that may not seem like a lot to you, but in a country where the average income is somewhere around $50/month that’s a lot of money. The wealthier relatives usually put up  the most part of the sum with the rest of the families providing the rest.

The coffins of the Ga tribe symbolize the essence of the deceased, his profession, a vice or his place in the community.

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China’s singles needn’t look for their soul-mates any longer, they cam just go to the Love-Supermarket and buy it from there.

Actually it’s not that easy, but it is a viable way for singles to find a compatible match. the Love-Supermarket opened last month in Xizhimen and was the scene of a special party in celebration of Singles’ Day, on November 11.

The Love Supermarket has had over 500 visitors and has already established 60 successful love connections. Over 200 photos of single people hang on the walls of the establishment, along with personal information (age, gender, career, income,etc.). All clients have to do is pick someone and pay 100 yuan to sign up for a date.

opinions concerning the Love Supermarket are split. Some believe the tax is to high just to meet someone, others don’t care about the money, but doubt the singles info displayed is genuine and fear some of the “accounts” were set up by the owners so they can cash in on the date tax. But, with over 500,000 single women past the average marriage age, the Love Supermarket is bound to be a success.

via China.org.cn

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SAPE stands for “Societe des Ambianceurs et Personnes Elegantes” which translates as the society of atmosphere setters and elegant people. Its members put fashion above all the other issues a developing country like Congo is facing right now.

The origins of La SAPE can be traced back to when the first French colonists arrived in the area. They brought with them their famous fashion sense and inspired the locals who regarded the white man as far more elegant and educated than they were. In 1922 Andre Bernard Matsoua was the first local who traveled to Paris and came back dressed as a true French gentleman.

Since that time, members of “La Societe des Ambianceurs et Personnes Elegantes” have been trying to get their hands on the newest, most expensive pieces of designer clothes that appear in Europe. There are some luxury shops in Brazzaville and Kinshasa, but most “sapeurs” prefer to get them directly from the Old Continent. This is actually every member’s dream, to travel to Paris and get their hands on killer wardrobes at the source.

Sapeurs spend thousands of dollars on suits, shirts, shoes and accessories, but this doesn’t mean they’re rich. In a country where the average salary is somewhere around $300/month, most of these guys don’t even have a job. Most of them lend their clothes for a living (renting a designer suit costs about $25/day), while those who travel to Europe bring the latest designer labels and sell them for a small profit.

All members of La SAPE have unique styles and crazy names like Parfait le Bodeur, Serge le Temoin de Playboy, Baleine Sarkozy or Christian Dior. They live for fashion and feed off the attention they get when parading on the dusty streets of Brazzaville. But while most look up to them and dream of being in their shoes, there are those that accuse them of betraying their heritage and encouraging others to do the same.

The photos below are part of Francesco Giusti‘s La SAPE Collection, which recently won him an award for photography. They really do capture the charm of these special entertainers.

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Featuring a series of gilded components, Lux Gold Fossball is the ultimate toy for ultra-rich foosball fans.

All the metal parts of Lux Gold are gilded, the rods are made of stainless steel and the figurines can be painted in 12 different colors. This is pretty much how the company explains the $29,724 price-tag on this baby. The world’s largest foosball table is one of a kind and doesn’t even come close to that amount.

via Pooltableportfolio

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This man’s body may be broken, but his spirit is stronger than most people’s. While other healthy individual spend their days begging, this noble soul works on fixing broken tires…with only his feet. Sure, life can sometimes be very cruel, but this guy refuses to just lay down and die, just because he can’t use his hands. You have to admit this is really impressive and inspiring stuff.

Photos via Tiexue

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Elaine Davidson is a Brazilian-born nurse, living in Edinburgh, Scotland, who has made a name for herself by decorating her body with over 6,000 piercings.

In 1997, Elaine had 280 piercings, quite a few for any other body-modder, but just the beginning for her. In 2000 she was acknowledged as the world’s most pierced woman, by the Guinness Book of Records, with 462 piercings, of which 192 on her face. But she kept adding to her collection, and in May 2008 she had 5,920 piercings. As of February 2009 Elaine is the proud bearer of 6,005 pieces of metal.

Most of Elaine Davidson’s piercings are in her genitalia, over 500, located both on the outside and on the inside. The total weight of her “jewelry” adds up to three kilograms. Doctors claim this type of extreme modding involves serious risks, such as infection and transmission of diseases like hepatitis or AIDS.

Despite her bizarre appearance, Elaine wants the public to know she doesn’t do drugs, drink alcohol or smoke cigarettes. Her only vice is Coca-Cola.

Kitten Kay Sera loves pink! But so do many other girls and women around the world. What makes her so special is her obsession to surround her self with everything pink.

The 46-year-old actress from Los Angeles, USA, earned the nickname of “The Pink Lady” because practically everything she owns is pink. Although she claims it isn’t weird, Kitten Kay admits she is drawn to pink like a magnet and can’t help surrounding herself with “any and everything pink”.

The Pink Lady claims to have worn only pink clothes for the last 25 years and to keep from getting bored with the color, she changes the shades and tries to approach different styles, like country, glamour, rock ‘n’ roll, etc. She even paints her 4-year-old Maltese dog, Kisses, using beetroot juice baths.

Kitten Kay Sera takes her obsession with pink to the extreme, going to funerals dressed from head to toe in the popular color and even dumping a guy because he was colorblind and couldn’t appreciate the beauty of pink.

But The Pink Lady says she’s happy with her life and loves it when complete strangers stop her on the street to give her their pink earrings and scarfs and fans send her pink stuff all the time.

via Telegraph.co.uk

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