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From everyday activities to unusual rules, some countries have laws that will leave you speechless! See what’s surprisingly illegal in different parts of the world!
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00:00If you live in Japan, your employer will take care of your waistline.
00:04In the USA, you won't be able to put a chicken on your head, even if you want to do
00:08it a lot.
00:09Plus, you'll find a Kinder Surprise egg only in the black market in this country.
00:14In Australia, you won't be allowed to touch a lightbulb in a public place.
00:18Yep, you got it right. We're talking about the weirdest bans and laws in the world.
00:24Your waistline can't be too wide in Japan, otherwise you might get in trouble.
00:29I'm not kidding. There's a curious regulation in this country called the Metabo Law.
00:34It was implemented to stop people living in Japan from gaining weight.
00:38Since 2008, everyone from the ages of 40 to 74 has to have their waist measured by their employer.
00:45The main goal of this campaign is to shrink the overweight population by 10 to 25 percent.
00:50If a man's waistline is more than 33 and a half inches and a woman's is above 35 and 6
00:56inches,
00:56they'll have to take on some serious physical activity, and these weight loss classes will be funded by their employer.
01:04If a company repeatedly fails to meet specific targets, namely to reduce the number of overweight employees, they get fined.
01:11There have been reports of large corporations getting fines of up to $19 million for missing their targets.
01:18Panasonic reportedly gives its employees Metabo check towels with tape measure-like markings.
01:23They allow employees to keep track of their waistlines and wipe their tears when they don't meet the requirements.
01:30Still, some companies aren't very strict about this law.
01:34After all, initially, the authorities wanted to ensure there was a minimum of 65 percent participation.
01:40In any case, it's a mistake to believe that the Metabo Law bans obesity, making it illegal.
01:47In the USA, no one will say a word about the size of your waistline.
01:51But if you pull a kinder surprise out of your pocket, oh, in this case, you'll have to pay a
01:56pretty penny.
01:58The thing is, confectionery products that contain a non-nutritive object are prohibited by law in this country.
02:05Unless this non-nutritive object is functional like a stick inside a lollipop.
02:11A few decades ago, the Consumer Product Safety Commission examined and issued a recall for some kinder surprise eggs that
02:18had been brought into the U.S. illegally.
02:20The toys within the eggs had small parts.
02:23The members of the commission decided that this chocolate product was intended for kids of all ages, including the youngest.
02:29But since these yummies violated the small parts regulation, they concluded that kinder surprise should be banned from being imported
02:36into the USA.
02:38In January 2011, one person was threatened with being fined more than $200 for carrying a single egg across the
02:46U.S. border into Minnesota.
02:47And in June 2012, two Seattle men were held for two and a half hours after returning to the U
02:53.S. from a trip to Vancouver.
02:55They had six kinder surprise eggs in their car.
02:58They were shocked when the potential fine was announced.
03:01$2,500 per egg!
03:04And still, kinder surprise eggs remain popular on the black market.
03:09You can easily buy kinder surprise in Sweden, but you won't be able to bring some other products into the
03:16country.
03:16For example, sausages, butter, chocolate and even potatoes grown outside of the European Union.
03:22Expired products are also prohibited.
03:25As for the products you can't bring home as a souvenir from Sweden, it's definitely Sörströming, at least if you're
03:32traveling by plane.
03:33It's an infamous delicacy made of fermented sea herring.
03:37After being caught, the fish are stored in a series of salted water solutions.
03:41Two months later or so, the partially preserved herrings are placed in airtight tins, and they continue to ferment for
03:47about a year.
03:48Three days after you open a can of Sörströming, the stench of fermented herring will still be hanging in the
03:54air.
03:55It'll cling to your skin and hair, hide between the threads of your tablecloth.
04:00Imagine a can of this stinky goodness exploding on a plane, affected by the changes of the atmospheric pressure in
04:06the cabin.
04:07You'd be begging for a parachute.
04:10And if your wish was granted, you could land in Wisconsin, where it was once prohibited to wear a chicken
04:15on your head.
04:16Yeah, you heard it correctly.
04:18Well, it's not actually clear whether this law ever existed in the first place, but it sure doesn't work these
04:24days.
04:25But rumors claim that you couldn't enter Wisconsin while carrying a chicken on your head.
04:29I mean, why would you want to wear a bird on your head?
04:33However ridiculous this law sounds, it's not truly unique.
04:37Just one state away in Minnesota, it's reportedly illegal to enter the state while carrying a duck on your head.
04:43I guess it makes the border between the two states a bird-free zone.
04:47Anyway, these laws are likely nothing more than an urban myth.
04:53That's not the end of the chicken story.
04:55In the town of Quitman, Georgia, it's officially illegal for chickens to cross the road.
05:00The town's legislation officially states that if you're an owner of any domestic fowl,
05:05you mustn't allow them to wander the streets of the town or be on the premises of any other person.
05:10The law was implemented to make people keep their farmyard birds properly contained at all times
05:15and prevent them from roaming on public property.
05:18So if you live in Quitman, own a chicken, and let it roam free,
05:22get ready for a very unpleasant visit resulting in a large fine.
05:28In Victoria, Australia, chickens are totally free to do whatever they want, but people aren't.
05:34Once it was illegal to change a light bulb unless you were a licensed electrician.
05:38Taking your own light bulb into your own hands could result in a fine of 10 Australian dollars.
05:44Luckily, a revision to the 1988 Electricity Safety Act brought a necessary update to this law.
05:51According to it, it was still illegal to do your own electrical work if you didn't have a license,
05:56but you could change a light bulb and remove a plug from a socket on your own.
05:59At the same time, you're still not permitted to change light bulbs in commercial and public establishments,
06:05particularly in Western Australia.
06:08By the way, another thing you can't do in Victoria is fly a kite to the annoyance of any person
06:14or sing an obscene song or ballad in a public place.
06:17In Queensland, it's illegal to post fake job advertisements.
06:20And in New South Wales, drivers splashing mud on public bus passengers can be fined up to $2,200.
06:30Even though Canada is on the other side of the world, it has its own share of weird bans.
06:35And one of them is related to coins.
06:38In this country, nothing is more important than politeness.
06:41And when you go shopping there, you shouldn't inconvenience the cashier by giving them too much change.
06:47So, there's a legal limit on the number of coins you can use for a single transaction.
06:53The Currency Act implemented in 1985 states that one can use no more than 25 pennies,
06:59100 nickels, 100 dimes, 40 quarters, 25 $1 coins, or 20 $2 coins within one transaction.
07:12If you exceed these limits, the vendor can refuse to accept them and you won't be able to complain.
07:17It's the law.
07:19It was actually created to prevent people from paying for expensive stuff with hundreds and thousands of coins
07:25and making cashiers count them.
07:27If you don't live in Canada, such limitations may seem weird.
07:31At the same time, they start to make sense when you read how, in 2015,
07:37an American student had to pay a $110 parking ticket and decided to do it using 11,000 pennies.
07:45He had to visit a few banks to collect the coins in five giant boxes.
07:54Let me continue my world tour, and now we're heading straight to Europe.
07:58Let's start our journey in Greece, a place with thousands of years of history.
08:03Even in modern days, there are still ancient ruins there that are being carefully preserved,
08:08and it's an interesting ride.
08:10The airport of Athens has a built-in museum with ancient artifacts.
08:15And here's how ancient and modern coexist there.
08:18Here's the view of the Acropolis from the street.
08:22A Spartan Roaming the Streets of Greece
08:25A Redditor shared a photo of a modern building built right over the ancient ruins.
08:30The visitors can see the ruins through the glass.
08:33Greece is also very well known for its cats roaming the streets everywhere.
08:38This Redditor spotted a cat guarding the National Bank of Greece.
08:43These days, everyone is trying to reduce the usage of plastic.
08:47Some use paper straws, and some go with glass straws.
08:50But this cafe in Greece offered to use macaroni as straws.
08:55I'm not sure if it's stupid or genius.
08:58Another user went to a restaurant in North Macedonia and got baffled when they served slices of pizza
09:04on waffles.
09:05Double win, a snack, and no waste.
09:09In Romania, vending machines seem to be a thing.
09:12This one, for example, is a machine with ham.
09:16And here's a better one.
09:17A vending machine selling cartons of eggs.
09:20Scrambled eggs, probably.
09:23Europe is a place where old neighbors are modern.
09:26And this combination is mesmerizing.
09:29I'll show you.
09:30This Redditor shared a photo of a modern basketball court
09:33squeezed between 700-year-old walls in Croatia.
09:36And here's a photo from inside a grocery store.
09:40Look at these old columns.
09:43Modern problems require modern solutions.
09:45These traffic lights light up the ground so that people who store their phones could notice when the light changes.
09:52Italy is a work of art with thousands of years of history.
09:56I have quite a bunch of stuff for you from there.
09:58Some ruins date back thousands of years, and a lot of that gets preserved.
10:03A Redditor shared a photo of a lobby of a hotel that has a glass floor so that the ruins
10:09were visible.
10:10And these are the railing in an Airbnb.
10:14Even street signs are a work of art in Italy.
10:17Look at this one.
10:18Another Redditor shared even more designs.
10:21This Redditor showed a photo of a supermarket that is located in an old theater in Venice.
10:28Another user added one more photo of that supermarket.
10:32Since we're talking about supermarkets, apparently, pets are allowed there.
10:36There are even special carts to carry them.
10:39Cities are centuries old, and there are quite a few narrow streets,
10:44so post vehicles have to adjust to fit them.
10:46Here's one of them.
10:48Some cities have canals or are located on islands, so boats are a thing.
10:54This is a UPS boat at Murano Island.
10:58Europe is packed with countries.
11:00The city of Basel in Switzerland is located right on the border with France and Germany.
11:05So the airport has three exits.
11:08You can walk out of it to France, Germany, or Switzerland.
11:11Let's walk out in Germany.
11:14Look, there's a traffic light with a girl walking a camel.
11:17The reasons are a mystery to me because camels aren't really a German thing, but it's cute.
11:23Here's another unique streetlight featuring Karl Marx, a famous German philosopher.
11:29Back to baffling vending machines.
11:31In Germany, you can find vending machines with sausages.
11:36Hamburg is Germany's major port city.
11:38There's a river that connects it to the North Sea.
11:41No wonder there's a drive-thru McDonald's for a boat.
11:45Look at this design of mineral water that is being sold in the Swiss Alps.
11:50A Redditor brought a souvenir from France.
11:53These are baguette-shaped pens.
11:56Look at this narrow house in Spain.
11:59I wonder what it looks like inside, but unfortunately, the Redditor only shared the exterior.
12:05In Portugal, cell phone towers are disguised as trees.
12:09And this is a bus that can ride the roads and then turn into a boat.
12:15A Redditor spotted doors in London that have doorknobs in the center.
12:20This seems super inconvenient, but apparently, the handle doesn't turn and exists only to pull the door closed.
12:27And the metal part with the keyhole has a little handle on the bottom of it.
12:32Europe is a historical place.
12:34This post box bears the mark of a king ruling over a century ago.
12:40Back in the day, red telephone boxes were in high demand.
12:44Nowadays, when every person has a cell phone or two, not so much.
12:49So telephone boxes are being used in different ways.
12:52This one, for example, is now a smartphone repair shop.
12:57Luxembourg is a small but rich country squeezed between France, Germany, and Belgium.
13:03And they have baguette vending machines.
13:06Let's move north first, to the Netherlands.
13:09Farmers border their fields with a strip of flowers and put up a sign with a QR code,
13:14where people can pay for picking the flowers.
13:18And here's just a weird installation spotted by some Redditor.
13:22In Denmark, in Arhus, a city founded by the Vikings in the 8th century,
13:27you can find traffic lights with Vikings pictured on them.
13:31Some trash cans in Swedish subways have a separate space for cans.
13:35Homeless people can pick them up and exchange the cans for some cash.
13:40There's a giant statue of a silver moose in Norway.
13:44And these are signs on bathroom stalls depicting reindeer.
13:49Apparently, Finnish people are as polite as Canadians.
13:52On the bus, they have a button to thank the bus driver.
13:56Also, a Redditor spotted a raccoon pattern on a bus seat.
14:01We all know rocking horses.
14:03Most of you probably had one in your early days.
14:06Well, Finnish little people have rocking moose.
14:10Many people come to Iceland hoping to see the northern lights.
14:14A Redditor had a phone in the hotel,
14:16which had a special button to wake the guest up when the northern lights appear.
14:21Lithuanians sometimes put fake police cars on the sides of the road to combat road speeding.
14:27Europe has been ruled by kings and queens for centuries.
14:32Even today, many countries like the UK, the Netherlands, Spain, Denmark, Belgium,
14:37and some other countries have monarchs.
14:40So, no wonder that there are hundreds of castles scattered across Europe.
14:45Poland doesn't have any monarchs these days.
14:48But it still has 500 castles.
14:50Here's a warning sign for ghosts next to one of them.
14:54In Wrocław, all landmarks have a model so that visually impaired people could touch and see them too.
15:01There's also a statue of Darth Vader in one Polish city.
15:05In reality, it's a statue of a Polish magnate who supervised the construction of a port.
15:10But from time to time, locals dress the statue in Lord Vader's costume.
15:14This sign in Poland specifically prohibits bikes, tractors, and horses to go on a highway.
15:21In some places, there's a separate line on the sidewalk for people who are walking and staring at their phones.
15:28And now, we travel across the Atlantic to Africa.
15:32This is Dune 7 in Namibia, the seventh biggest dune in the world.
15:37It's as tall as the Empire State Building.
15:41An internet user shared this photo.
15:43Someone in Tanzania put a literal penthouse on top of the building.
15:47I did some research and found out that it's a hotel.
15:51Still doesn't explain the roof, but I'm totally buying it.
15:54Maybe it's marketing.
15:56Drivers in Mozambique should be careful and watch out for elephants.
16:00And this is a sign from South Africa.
16:02Watch out for penguins!
16:04And another one that asked to baboon-proof the trash bins.
16:08So baboons are the raccoons of South Africa.
16:12Trees growing through the roads aren't surprising anymore.
16:15But this is a palm tree in Morocco growing through multiple balconies.
16:20A Redditor shared a photo of a runaway horse in Israel returning to the backyard in an urban area.
16:26Urban horse encounters are relatively common in the country.
16:30A hotel in Turkey served a whole honeycomb for breakfast to this Redditor.
16:36You know how they say, when in Rome, do as the Romans do?
16:40Meaning, in Rome, you need to make sure your goldfish has a deluxe bowl to live in.
16:46In Nigeria, don't you dare to bring your own wheelbarrow.
16:50And perish the thought of adding as much mayo as you want to your dish when you're in France.
16:55Yep, bands around the world may be surprising, to say the least.
17:00Number 1. You will never see a good old doorknob in Vancouver, Canada.
17:05Some time ago, the city changed its building code to require the use of cool and sleek door levers instead.
17:11This change is all about making buildings more accessible and easier to use.
17:15Not only new buildings are getting a new makeover.
17:18Even Vancouver's historic city hall had its fancy Art Deco doorknobs replaced with shiny gold levers.
17:25But it's not that you can't legally have it in your house.
17:28There isn't a team of doorknob police coming to your house to confiscate your knobs.
17:33You can keep them as long as you like.
17:37Number 2. Comes with a geoguesser tip for y'all.
17:40If you see this chair in the picture, it means it's 100% not in Basel, Switzerland.
17:46It's called a monoblock chair, and it's special.
17:49You see, most objects give away clues about when and where they're from,
17:53like the shape of electrical outlets or the labels on your shampoo bottle.
17:57But the monoblock is context-free.
17:59Some people call them one of the world's most perfectly designed objects,
18:03while others say the homogenous nature of the chair is disturbing and the real evil of globalization.
18:09But why is it banned in Basel?
18:11Turns out the authorities just want the city to be pretty,
18:15and the chair design isn't to their liking.
18:17Right, if you want to keep one in your backyard, feel free.
18:21But they've been a big no in public spaces since 2008.
18:273. If you were ever thinking of bringing a wheelbarrow to Nigeria,
18:32I've got some news for you.
18:33Don't even try.
18:35Should you need it for some reason during your stay in Nigeria,
18:38just buy one there when you arrive.
18:40The authorities won't let you bring your imported wheelbarrow across the border.
18:44Why?
18:45Well, they're all about supporting their own manufacturing industry.
18:48So they want to give their local wheelbarrow makers a chance to shine.
18:54At number 4, we've got China,
18:56where the authorities decided to put a stop to time travel.
19:00Wait a minute, it's not what you think.
19:02No time travel machine has been invented.
19:04The ban is on TV shows and movies.
19:07By the way, it's not something new.
19:09The law was introduced in the early 2010s.
19:12Apparently, the big shots in charge want to keep things real
19:15and are not too keen on distorting historical events.
19:19They say some scripts are getting a bit too wild.
19:22Making up myths, promoting superstition, and disrespecting the country's past.
19:285. Coffee pods
19:30They've become super popular because they make brewing coffee so easy.
19:34But Hamburg, Germany doesn't seem to be a fan of those pods.
19:37Around 8 years ago, they took a stand by banning plastic coffee pods from authorities' offices.
19:43These little pods are made of various materials, making recycling a real challenge.
19:47Number 6. Chewing gum
19:49It has been banned in Singapore since 1992.
19:53The ban was put in place to stop people from sticking gum in all sorts of weird places,
19:58like subway doors, lock cylinders, and elevator buttons.
20:02Yuck!
20:03But costly train shenanigans were the last straw for the authorities.
20:06The ban was put in place after some serious gum incidents on the mass rapid transit or MRT trains in
20:13the late 80s.
20:14Some mischievous or mischievous pranksters have been gumming up the works on MRT trains
20:19by sticking chewing gum on the door sensors.
20:22That caused a sticky situation and messed up train services.
20:26And there you have it. Chewing gum got completely banned.
20:30Now, just a note here.
20:31Yep, these are gums prescribed for therapeutic or dental reasons.
20:35And yep, they're still allowed.
20:37Also, don't get this whole ban wrong.
20:39It's not illegal to chew gum in Singapore.
20:41So if you come there as a tourist, you can bring in a little gum for personal use if you're
20:46traveling.
20:47Just do not stick it under this nice park bench, okay?
20:50What will create you a ton of troubles, though, is importing and selling chewing gum.
20:58Iceland is number 7 in our ban hit parade.
21:01Back in 1994, Reykjavik was like, no dogs allowed.
21:05It wasn't because they were all about cats.
21:08It was to stop this nasty tapeworm from spreading.
21:10The disease was serious business, causing all sorts of health problems.
21:15But don't worry.
21:16Dogs are cool now as long as they follow the rules.
21:19Nowadays in Reykjavik, it's all about the cats.
21:22They're everywhere, roaming the streets like they, you know, own the place.
21:26You can't walk two steps without seeing a furry little friend begging for attention.
21:31These Reykjavik kitties are so popular that they even have their own Facebook page.
21:35People love them.
21:37And some even carry around treats just in case they come across a friendly feline.
21:42And since there aren't many threats to cats in Iceland, they're thriving.
21:478.
21:47The Philippines
21:48Now, this one is really weird.
21:50Singing my way in karaoke bars is sort of banned in this country.
21:55This seemingly harmless song has been linked to some pretty serious consequences, like fistfights and even people's early demise.
22:03No one knows the exact number of lethal cases caused by this song, but there have been at least a
22:08handful of incidents in the last 10 years.
22:10The song's lyrics, which can come off as a bit arrogant and prideful, seem to rile people up when sung
22:17in a not-so-great way.
22:18This has led some karaoke bars to unofficially ban the song to prevent any craziness from breaking out.
22:269.
22:27Hey, have you heard about Japan's Metabo Law?
22:30It's all about measuring waist sizes to tackle obesity.
22:34It was introduced in 2008, and the idea was that if companies and local authorities didn't meet the goals, they
22:41would face financial penalties.
22:42The Ministry of Health believed this campaign would help prevent various health conditions.
22:47So, every year, people aged 40 to 75 had to get their waist measured.
22:53Employers and local authorities needed to make sure at least 65% of people participated.
22:59The goal was to reduce Japan's obesity rates by 25% by 2015, and if they hadn't made it, they
23:06would have gotten slapped with a fine.
23:08Did it work?
23:09Well, in 2024, there were only 4.5% of people who reportedly had weight issues in Japan.
23:1710.
23:18And we're back to Canada.
23:19So, if you catch someone in there counting out pennies in line, you can totally have some fun with them.
23:25Legally speaking, of course.
23:27According to the Canadian Currency Act, there's a limit to the number of pennies you can use in a transaction.
23:3225, to be exact.
23:34So, if someone tries using 26 coins, you can play sheriff and send them to coin jail.
23:40Snatch up their pennies as evidence.
23:42Yeah.
23:4411.
23:45An economy-regulated country here.
23:47Apparently, in France, they're cracking down on condiments in public schools.
23:52They're trying to make meals healthier for students.
23:54The rule is that you can't just go crazy with mayo, ketchup, and vinaigrette anymore.
23:59They have to be served according to the dish.
24:03Finally, Italy.
24:05In Rome, you can't keep your goldfish in a boring old glass bowl.
24:09Nope, that's considered cruel, because those little guys need their oxygen flow.
24:13Plus, if you keep them in a bowl for too long, they might go blind.
24:18Also, you can't give away goldfish's prizes.
24:21The law has a whole subsection about it.
24:23So, if you're planning on bringing a goldfish home from your next trip to Rome,
24:27make sure you've got a fancy tank ready for them.
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