Bangkok, Thailand Most of us have tongues, and we keep them for the duration of our lives. There are exceptions to this, unfortunately, including the 300 individuals in Cairo who had their tongues cut out by Sultan Baybars al-Jashankir about 700 years ago (he didn't like their political humor). But the average reader of this...

No matter where you go, there's always danger in being oblivious. Quicksand, scams, and plain old disease wait for those who don't know any better. But travel also plunges us into a healthy oblivion -- the sort of state that reminds us just how little knowledge we carry with us. I could spend all day...