Sending a postcard can be a hassle, especially when you’re busy exploring remote jungles, navigating through underground catacombs, and seeking out unusual tourist attractions to pose beside. Whether you’re a luxury traveller or a thrill-seeking backpacker type, it’s not uncommon to find yourself with severely limited free time – certainly not enough to head down to the shops for a pre-made postcard and stamp.
Thankfully, there’s a better option available. Thanks to iPostcard – a new iPhone app that makes sending personalised cards postcards simple – you can share holiday moments without a second of inconvenience. Just make sure you don’t send a personal postcard from any of these ultra-weird and creepy travel destinations.
Sedlec Ossuary, Czech Republic
From the outside, the Sedlec Ossuary resembles any other Central European church. It’s elegant, stunningly pretty, and situated in the middle of lush countryside. Once you walk inside, however, things change quite quickly.
You see, this small Roman Catholic church is home to over 40,000 skeletons, each arranged in unusual positions to provide furniture, decorative pieces, and bizarre works of art for churchgoers. If you’re afraid of ghosts, the Sedlec Ossuary is best avoided, but adventure travellers and occult fans will no doubt have the time of their lives.
The Catacombs of Paris, France
The Catacombs of Paris are one of the most interesting tourist attracts in a city that’s well-known for amazing sights. As the French capital grew, inner city churches became swamped with requests for burials and very short on space. As a result, bodies weren’t buried in a graveyard or church complex, but thrown in mass graves under the city.
While only a small section of the Catacombs is open to the public, the attraction remains one of the most popular, albeit grim, in Paris. Just don’t send a picture home – your family, friends, and colleagues might have a little trouble working out whose bones are on display.
Lenin’s Tomb in Moscow, Russia
While the USSR never quite managed to create a ‘perfect’ economy, they have perfected one thing that the West never appreciated: embalming their leaders. Both Vladimir Lenin and his Vietnamese counterpart, Ho Chi Minh, are preserved in public tombs open to citizens, tourists, and intrigued history buffs alike.
As tempting as it may be to pull out the camera, this is one destination where you really shouldn’t. Viewers of Lenin’s body are walked through the tomb surrounded by armed guards, and even small disrespectful actions like reaching into pockets can result in a swift arrest and trespassing notice.
The Arch of Triumph, North Korea
Despite the Arc de Triomphe’s popularity as a photo target, its eastern neighbour hasn’t quite enjoyed the same privilege. The Arch of Triumph, a slightly up-sized and less impressive version of France’s well-known landmark, is located in the North Korean capital of Pyongyang.
Not only are photos only allowed under direct permission, poor photographs or ‘disrespectful’ images of the arch can result in a quick deportation of long-term stay in North Korean jail. Our advice: stick to photographing the French arch, and leave this North Korean icon unvisited.
Tuol Sleng Museum, Cambodia
Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum houses some of Cambodia’s nastiest memories, particularly those from the country’s four-year period as a communist agricultural state. While the Khmer Rouge were forced out of Cambodia in the early 1980s, their crimes against humanity remain an issue in the small Asian country.
While photography is allowed throughout the museum, this is one grim tourist attraction that you won’t want to send back home. By all means observe and capture, but it’s probably best to rethink sending this instant postcard back home to your grandparents.
