) ]& t( G* p CAsia's most sinful cities 20 April, 2011 5 A% c1 ]& O2 [8 q) F) p6 _The best cities in Asia for indulging the devil on your shoulder( Z) S, e) v$ l1 J' c
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Gluttony: Taipei, Taiwan& W; h$ _; b9 p) O% ~
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Cheap eats, everywhere, day or night. 3 u! f+ I5 Q( H8 t
: O5 t8 E% Q8 K+ W9 p% l1 ATaipei sports 18 streets dedicated to nothing other than food. Where you might usually expect a bus shelter, instead you'll find a barbecue. Sidewalks become snack stalls. The pungent smell of stinky tofu fills the air. % \; c0 A- T! N/ O, D; p& {: G4 h! e i$ G
Night markets in Taipei have become famous for their snack selections, or xiaochi, literally meaning "small eats." . P" q% U: l1 F; K( [: ^7 |" | i% b2 D9 {- k& e! B; Y9 v
The dishes may be little, but so are the prices, running around US$1-2 dollars. A fat gut never came so easily. ! |) t( w6 O. O / Z& l" B8 ~2 W* r3 G T# f9 O* j/ _+ [) O8 i( w3 Q, h
6 o1 R7 x! |1 [6 k5 `6 P ) N$ y; {6 s& q+ P: b2 eTwo men, four chopsticks, myriad good reasons to eat out again. 2 C0 D4 J; @7 k& W7 p 2 ~- N$ Y2 m5 _: ^, G1 _4 g+ zPride: Manila, Philippines - H2 i% X; s; \" P& R4 E7 H' q- w c6 i5 z8 j s9 {
Much is made about the loveliness of the Filipino female. But you wouldn't know it by talking to the Filipino men -- they're too busy gazing lustfully into the mirror.- m* N( @, Z1 x" [9 a6 d0 ]
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According to a study from Synovate, Filipino men are the most narcissistic in Asia. A whopping 48 percent consider themselves sexually attractive. 6 ~# v* O8 k. a3 y% i, ?2 r. @; @8 u, n6 r! i3 x/ _: {' M% g
And if the ladies reading this think the guys' encounters with the brow tweazers are for your benefit, sorry -- nine out of 10 Filipino men polled said they liked to look good for themselves, not anyone else. , x7 {* Z0 D0 z 2 z% `' b4 k' \! hBy way of comparison, just 25 percent of men in Singapore considered themselves sexually attractive, 17 percent in China and Taiwan and a measly 12 percent of Hong Kong guys think the same. . H) M4 C' h! r2 D9 p
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$ y' ?; l, s; S+ U; | : I, v& t6 g( o. x+ @# y ' ?1 K5 b9 ~' x4 MThe only men in the world who call out their own name in bed. 4 R0 B4 }0 l* t" Q: r* A, u/ u( F+ K1 h7 g% f. G+ \+ J, ^
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Greed: Shenzhen, China & k; f( n2 X1 h 3 N( S+ x, t/ bThe financial crisis is for suckers.8 o* t$ M3 q! R# Q
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When everyone else was tightening the belts, Shenzhen carried on regardless, pumping out billions of dollars worth of high-tech products.0 V a0 m9 B; N) C% D
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) I/ U+ ~0 i* z+ {$ X WShenzhen is one of the fastest growing cities in the world, with a provincial GDP of US$42 billion -- that's more than some countries such as Guatemala and Lebanon, and four times more than Iceland. b: U+ X& @; h0 d1 i
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Meanwhile, China's millionaires keep millionairing -- it won't be long before there are 1 million U.S. dollar millionaires in the country, guided by Shenzhen's philosophy: if you can't make a million, make a billion.+ F3 c' d( G2 w O
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& V+ w6 Q. t2 E" K' w) x $ `8 z4 w; Z3 B; J9 M4 S6 c4 y9 D. jBigger, faster, stronger, richer. ' ]5 }) F5 Y3 C5 B+ c P0 O
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Lust: Tokyo, Japan * n# t- L8 e* ZJapan's sex industry is worth an estimated ¥2.5 trillion (US$30 billion), second only to the country's automobile industry. Is there any competition? ; M4 n6 [( N& P7 Q3 S4 J! ` 0 W4 ~% e9 N& K) I: q/ q' f, Z5 T2 Y
According to “Pink Box” author Joan Sinclair, “Japan offers absolutely everything imaginable.” : M4 W7 J+ f% L# ^! N
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From gratuitous puke porn (and worse) to the barely titillating maid cafes, Tokyo is like a dirty old man in a teenager's body. But one who celebrates his lewd desires with the gusto of an exhibitionist poodle on heat.) g1 {) f' H! g" J
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7 e: C; {0 ]+ P1 ]6 RHead here to indulge your fetishes or simply to have yourself bathed by a pretty young thing in a uniform. ( l& c5 s- {+ f/ V) W3 [3 c' W3 g
! B* n1 K, o6 ~: r9 M. b5 l9 q+ c3 Z& v1 n1 q' H # O4 ?- R0 p% n; `% Q# nWhatever tickles your fancy, Tokyo delivers.5 `( |( M! d) X
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/ L+ Y# J+ X v, S" J6 wWrath: Pyongyang, North Korea/ ?! l5 d3 e/ T& h" T! U0 D- a
Pugnacious, belligerent, quarrelsome ... the North Korean capital is the moody adolescent of the continent. But unlike most spotty delinquents who express their angry insecurities by piercing body parts or coloring their hair, this one sinks ships and shells islands. $ @. W) G) {1 M; n3 w5 X
; M' T0 l) W9 n. m" [, f8 A / m$ }8 w' k' }' A! u4 L! H& ]" YNorth Korea's national sport is Taekwondo. If there's a food shortage, the military get served first. Propaganda films talk of the "invincible power" of the North Korean army and posters in the capital state, "The way to peace is on the point of a bayonet." , A$ r6 @: d4 b1 Y& K5 R/ f# s3 m8 u7 t
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Its army comprises nearly 1 million troops, out of a nation of 24 million. # R9 K$ Z8 p8 L, u; T* m, ]8 z
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6 C, n- c! T* Z, F0 gStill, the Dear Leader Kim Jong Il does claim to have made the world's best ever golf score -- an astonishing 38 under par on a regulation 18-hole course incuding five holes-in-one. And that on his first ever attempt, too.% S: q/ Z/ d7 E3 U5 W( X4 R
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Perhaps he's not so bad. : H/ T3 G- Y @" A7 Q8 F
6 [9 j& E. g+ t 3 ^6 y( ^9 T& BSo much fun to be had as the scourge of all peace-loving nations.
