They are the biggest clichés but also the most popular poses among tourists. You do have a picture of yourself holding the Taj Mahal by its tip, right? Pushing back back the Leaning Tower of Pisa? Kissing the sphinx? We have all been there, done that.

If you are thinking boring clichéd photographs of tourists, then don’t. Don’t underestimate the wackiness of the human mind. Nobody ever accused it of being dull. People did call it ‘perverted’ and ‘cynical’ though. Let’s have a look at some of the over-abused stereotypes and some oh-my-god-that’s-fucking-awesome clicks.

 1. Pushing Back The Leaning Tower of Pisa

Okay this one is too obvious. Rule of symmetry. If it’s falling, you put it back. We like to think we can restore the Leaning Tower of Pisa back to its original position.

Do they realize the tower is not moving back?

 

Now that’s creative!

What’s with the phallic obsession?

2. Doing Things to the Washington Monument

It’s a building. Some see it as one, some don’t.

Really?

 

That would hurt, lady!

3.       The Jumping Jack

“Oh shoot! I was not fully mid-air! Click again!”

“Now I will jump from a higher rock!”

They are fit enough to have travelled to the top of the mountain. But look, they are fitter! They can jump, and oh-so-high! What a jump! They are flying.

Boooorinnng!

 

Not this one!

 

4.       The Quintessential Tongue out and Victory Pose

we are on a roll!

Yayy I am bold. I am mad. I am bad. Don’t believe me? See this big wide tongue of mine sticking out from my mouth? Yeah baby, that’s how waaahheeellld I can get. Not wild enough? Let me colour it pink.

Life is hard these days. It’s quite an achievement to go on a holiday. If you manage one, you truly are a winner and deserve the victory sign.

 

5.       Hey Sphinx, Let Me Kiss You

While nobody kisses the mummies sleeping inside the pyramids, most tourists choose the majestic sphinx built by Egyptians in 2000 B.C. It’s an optical illusion since the sphinx is actually too big to be kissed by human lips. So whoever thought of kissing him first earned the statue lovers forever.

Love from a previous birth?

 

 6.       Holding The Taj Mahal

Shah Jahan wouldn’t have thought of this, neither would he have liked this. People holding his precious monument as if it were a dead animal. No offence Mumtaz.

 

Begum, what are you holding?      

 

7.       Being Big at Salt Flat Of Bolivia

Okay this one is actually cool. It’s one of the best natural optical illusions in the world. Salar de Uyuni is a dreamy place. The flat scenery creates incredible size-perception illusions. And the pictures people click here are far from clichéd. It is such an vast open piece of land that nobody can click the same picture twice.

What’s cooking?

 

Juggling men

 

8.       Cut-Out For Greater Things

Man is full of possibilities. He can be anything. And that is why comic cut-outs so fascinate adult and child alike. Be it superman, or a six-pack-abs hunk, we like to put our head to the popular image guillotine.

 

 

Nishi Jain

Nishi Jain spent five years studying English literature at Delhi University, at the end of which she realized ‘all art is useless’. Another two years editing novels and writing newspaper articles, and shouting herself hoarse in street plays, she realized erudition never got anybody anywhere. So, she took off and visited the four corners of India, came back, and announced that the best thing in the world was cheesecake. Now, she just writes, plays ping pong, and eats cake on the sly.

Nishi Jain – who has written posts on WAH Blog.

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