00:00You know how they say, when in Rome, do as the Romans do?
00:04Meaning, in Rome, you need to make sure your goldfish has a deluxe bowl to live in.
00:10In Nigeria, don't you dare to bring your own wheelbarrow!
00:14And perish the thought of adding as much mayo as you want to your dish when you're in
00:18France!
00:19Yep, bans around the world may be surprising, to say the least!
00:24Number 1.
00:25You will never see a good old doorknob in Vancouver, Canada.
00:29Some time ago, the city changed its building code to require the use of cool and sleek
00:33door levers instead.
00:35This change is all about making buildings more accessible and easier to use.
00:39Not only new buildings are getting a new makeover.
00:42Even Vancouver's historic City Hall had its fancy Art Deco doorknobs replaced with
00:47shiny gold levers.
00:49But it's not that you can't legally have it in your house.
00:52There isn't a team of doorknob police coming to your house to confiscate your knobs.
00:56You can keep them as long as you like.
01:00Number 2 comes with a GeoGuessr tip for y'all.
01:04If you see this chair in the picture, it means it's 100% not in Basel, Switzerland.
01:09It's called a monoblock chair, and it's special.
01:12You see, most objects give away clues about when and where they're from, like the shape
01:17of electrical outlets or the labels on your shampoo bottle.
01:21But the monoblock is context-free.
01:23Some people call them one of the world's most perfectly designed objects, while others
01:27say the homogenous nature of the chair is disturbing and the real evil of globalization.
01:33But why is it banned in Basel?
01:35Turns out the authorities just want the city to be pretty, and the chair design isn't
01:40to their liking.
01:41Right, if you want to keep one in your backyard, feel free.
01:44But they've been a big no in public spaces since 2008.
01:503.
01:52If you were ever thinking of bringing a wheelbarrow to Nigeria, I've got some news for you.
01:57Don't even try.
01:58Should you need it for some reason during your stay in Nigeria, just buy one there when
02:02you arrive.
02:04The authorities won't let you bring your imported wheelbarrow across the border.
02:08Why?
02:09Well, they're all about supporting their own manufacturing industry, so they want to
02:12give their local wheelbarrow makers a chance to shine.
02:184.
02:19We've got China, where the authorities decided to put a stop to time travel.
02:24Wait a minute, it's not what you think.
02:25No time travel machine has been invented.
02:28The ban is on TV shows and movies.
02:31By the way, it's not something new.
02:32The law was introduced in the early 2010s.
02:35Apparently, the big shots in charge want to keep things real and are not too keen on distorting
02:41historical events.
02:42They say some scripts are getting a bit too wild, making up myths, promoting superstition,
02:48and disrespecting the country's past.
02:515.
02:52Coffee pods.
02:53They've become super popular because they make brewing coffee so easy.
02:57But Hamburg, Germany doesn't seem to be a fan of those pods.
03:01Around 8 years ago, they took a stand by banning plastic coffee pods from authorities' offices.
03:07These little pods are made of various materials, making recycling a real challenge.
03:11While it's true that these coffee capsules can create a lot of problems, they're still
03:16loved by many.
03:17In fact, they've become a big hit in the US and Europe, making up a chunk of the coffee
03:22market.
03:23Hamburg is hoping to lead the way in showing people just how wasteful these pods really
03:28are.
03:296.
03:30Chewing gum.
03:31It has been banned in Singapore since 1992.
03:35The ban was put in place to stop people from sticking gum in all sorts of weird places
03:40like subway doors, lock cylinders, and elevator buttons.
03:44Yuck!
03:45But costly train shenanigans were the last straw for the authorities.
03:49The ban was put in place after some serious gum incidents on the Mass Rapid Transit or
03:54MRT trains in the late 80s.
03:56Some mischievous pranksters have been gumming up the works on MRT trains by sticking chewing
04:02gum on the door sensors.
04:04That caused a sticky situation and messed up train services.
04:08And there you have it, chewing gum got completely banned.
04:12Just a note here, yep, these are gums prescribed for therapeutic or dental reasons.
04:17And yep, they're still allowed.
04:18Also, don't get this whole ban wrong, it's not illegal to chew gum in Singapore.
04:23So if you come there as a tourist, you can bring in a little gum for personal use if
04:27you're traveling.
04:29Just don't stick it under this nice park bench, okay?
04:32What will create you a ton of troubles, though, is importing and selling chewing gum.
04:40Iceland is number 7 in our ban hit parade.
04:43Back in 1994, Reykjavik was like, no dogs allowed.
04:47It wasn't because they were all about cats, it was to stop this nasty tapeworm from spreading.
04:52The disease was serious business, causing all sorts of health problems.
04:57But don't worry, dogs are cool now as long as they follow the rules.
05:01Nowadays in Reykjavik, it's all about the cats.
05:04They're everywhere, roaming the streets like they, you know, own the place.
05:08You can't walk two steps without seeing a furry little friend begging for attention.
05:13These Reykjavik kitties are so popular that they even have their own Facebook page.
05:17People love them, and some even carry around treats just in case they come across a friendly
05:22feline.
05:24And since there aren't many threats to cats in Iceland, they're thriving.
05:288.
05:29The Philippines Now this one is really weird.
05:32Singing My Way in karaoke bars is sort of banned in this country.
05:36This seemingly harmless song has been linked to some pretty serious consequences, like
05:41fistfights and even people's early demise.
05:44No one knows the exact number of lethal cases caused by this song, but there have been at
05:49least a handful of incidents in the last 10 years.
05:52The song's lyrics, which can come off as a bit arrogant and prideful, seem to rile
05:57people up when sung in a not-so-great way.
06:00This has led some karaoke bars to unofficially ban the song to prevent any craziness from
06:06breaking out.
06:089.
06:09Hey, have you heard about Japan's Metabo Law?
06:12It's all about measuring waist sizes to tackle obesity.
06:15It was introduced in 2008, and the idea was that if companies and local authorities didn't
06:21meet the goals, they would face financial penalties.
06:24The Ministry of Health believed this campaign would help prevent various health conditions.
06:29So every year, people aged 40 to 75 had to get their waist measured.
06:35Employers and local authorities needed to make sure at least 65% of people participated.
06:41The goal was to reduce Japan's obesity rates by 25% by 2015.
06:46And if they hadn't made it, they would have gotten slapped with a fine.
06:50Did it work?
06:51Well, in 2024, there are only 4.5% of people who reportedly have weight issues in Japan.
06:5810.
07:00And we're back to Canada.
07:01So if you catch someone in there counting out pennies in line, you can totally have
07:05some fun with them, legally speaking, of course.
07:08According to the Canadian Currency Act, there's a limit to the number of pennies you can use
07:12in a transaction.
07:1425, to be exact.
07:16So if someone tries using 26 coins, you can play sheriff and send them to coin jail.
07:22Snatch up their pennies as evidence, yeah.
07:2511.
07:26And a condiment-regulated country here.
07:29Apparently in France, they're cracking down on condiments in public schools.
07:34They're trying to make meals healthier for students.
07:36The rule is that you can't just go crazy with mayo, ketchup, and vinaigrette anymore.
07:41They have to be served according to the dish.
07:4412.
07:45Finally, Italy.
07:46In Rome, you can't keep your goldfish in a boring old glass bowl.
07:51Nope, that's considered cruel because those little guys need their oxygen flow.
07:55Plus, if you keep them in a bowl for too long, they might go blind.
07:59Also, you can't give away goldfishes' prizes.
08:02The law has a whole subsection about it.
08:05So if you're planning on bringing a goldfish home from your next trip to Rome, make sure
08:09you've got a fancy tank ready for them.
08:12And thank you for watching!
08:14That's it for today!
08:17So hey, if you pacified your curiosity, then give the video a like and share it with your
08:22friends!
08:23Or if you want more, just click on these videos and stay on the Bright Side!
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