The Mutter Museum: Philadelphia, Pa.
Staring open-mouthed at a stranger's physical oddities is usually considered rather rude, but at the Mutter Museum, unabashed staring is encouraged — nay, demanded. How could you avert your gaze from an obese corpse that somehow turned into soap?

The Philadelphia museum exhibits some 20,000 objects showcasing human health anomalies of spine-tingling variety. With unblinking eyes, you can peruse the display of 2,000 objects removed from people's throats or put your face up against the glass to see President Grover Cleveland's cancerous jaw growth. And don't miss the skeleton of a woman long accustomed to wearing a corset; the suffocating apparatus slowly altered the bone structure of her ribcage, all in the name of culturally defined beauty. (You'll never complain about underwire again!) But these odd offerings are no mere gimcrack. Collectively they seem to communicate a message of medical progress. Admission: $12, with discounts for students and seniors. Children under 6 are free.

Glore Psychiatric Museum: St. Joseph, Mo.
About an hour's drive from Kansas City, the Glore Psychiatric Museum documents the history of "State Lunatic Asylum No. 2" (only just closed in the mid 1990's). The holdings are contained in a separate, modern building, as the original asylum is now serving as a prison.

Some of the devices used to treat the insane are reminiscent of a torture museum — like a tranquilizer chair and blood-letting blades. And in a clear attempt to one-up the Mutter Museum, Glore showcases 1,446 objects of digestive intrigue — paper clips, nails, safety pins, buttons — removed from one patient's stomach and intestines in 1929 (she died on the operating table). The second floor of the building displays art created by the inmates. Admission: $3.50, with discounts for children. The price includes admission to two other local museums.

Sulabh International Museum of Toilets: New Delhi, India
"Unlike body functions like dance, drama and songs, defecation is considered very lowly." So begins a 1995 paper written by Dr. Bindeswar Pathak, the founder of this New Delhi museum as well as the Sulabh International Social Service Organization. And with 600 to 900 million people in India (as of 1995) practicing "open defecation, the subject of [the] toilet is as important if not more than other social challenges like literacy, poverty, education and employment."

Ostensibly part of a sanitation crusade, the Sulabh International Museum of Toilets follows the toilet's historical pipeline from 3,000 B.C. to the present. What began as a hole in the ground — and remains a hole in the ground in some parts of the world — has come a long way in terms of design, comfort and plumbing. The museum offers fun facts (Louis XIV purportedly used to relieve himself while holding court), examinations of toilet customs from around the world, and arts and literature (from poems to painstakingly crafted chamber pots).

Despite the museum's clear element of humor, we should note that the founder has done quite a bit of social good, providing affordable toilets for thousands in India. Admission is free, though ironically there is a charge for the public lavatory (about 2.5 cents).

Further afield
Looking for a few more odd museums to supplement your upcoming travel? Check out these other options:

The Paris Sewer Museum is located under the Left Bank. Visitors get a guided tour of a portion of the impressive system that outlines the history of the rat-infested place (the inspiration for Les Miserables). It's parallel to the Seine, so after you emerge from from the city's underbelly you can bask in the beauty of its famous river. Admission: about $6, with discounts for seniors, students and children.

Houston's National Museum of Funeral History respectfully sets out to "preserve the rich heritage of the funeral industry." A casket factory exhibit, information on the art of embalming, and various hearses round out the dignified display. There's also a funeral school on the premises. Admission: $6, with discounts for seniors, veterans and students.

If you've got a phobia of dolls or dummies, you may want to steer clear of the Vent Haven Museum in Kentucky, with its impressive (if slightly creepy) collection of ventriloquist dummies. The museum hosts a yearly convention at which several hundred ventriloquists, amateur and professional, come together to celebrate their unique craft. Admission: $5. Tours must be scheduled ahead of time.

Note: All admission prices are subject to change at any time and may vary with currency fluctuations.

Don't miss these Travel stories from msnbc.com Who's gaining from a weak dollar? | Dollar-friendly spots The best guided city walking tours | More walking trips Bag great deals at the world’s best outlet stores S.C. gay group to pay for ads after state balks Romantic getaways of the stars  |    Celeb slide show

MORE FROM TRAVEL

Travel Section Front

Where the stars go for romantic getaways Beware the boot: Helping parents, kids fly right Be a jet-setter! Maximizing your carry-on Eight places to live out your fantasies World’s most authentic spa experiences Bangkok replaces Florence as world's best city Summer flying survival guide Local travel eases pressure on vacation budgets Dozens of new World Heritage Sites named Should you check or ship your bags? Travel Section Front   Add Travel headlines to your news reader: