You've got vacation time coming up. How are you going to spend it? Reclining on some exotic beach, drunk on fruity liquors and the mad power of a favorable exchange rate? Touring the cultural heart of Europe, in the mistaken hopes that it will get you laid? Sitting on your couch, power-binging seasons of shows that you don't even really like, because real vacations cost money? If none of those sound appealing, you could always visit one of the following locations, where the very word "vacation" is leant a sinister irony ...

6 Gawk At A War As It Happens

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A tour guide on the Israeli-Syrian border described it best: "People come here every day to see the show. For people visiting the area, it's interesting. They feel that they are a part of it. They can go home and tell their friends, 'I was on the border and I saw a battle.'"

Gil Eliahu / Haaretz

"It was a blast! Literally!"

Touring war zones is now a bona fide option for tourists who have (we're guessing) exceptional travel insurance. Offering destinations ranging from Mexico to Africa to the Middle East, companies like War Zone Tours lead thrill seekers directly into actual battles for the actual hell of it. On the Iraq trip, for instance, you can visit "the site of one of the largest car-bomb explosions in history," while those in Beirut may spend a day "driving through a Hezbollah rally" and rubbernecking "destroyed buildings from car bomb assassinations."

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If you prefer a more hands-on war experience, Israel has a number of options to satisfy your unhealthy priorities. Lionops Military and Extreme Tourism offers a variety of programs led by former members of the Israel Defense Forces, in which you can learn everything from hand-to-hand combat techniques to guerrilla warfare strategy. Participants also get to fire M16s, Jerichos, Uzis, and whatever other weapons untrained civilians should never be handed, ever.

Karolyn Coorsh / The Jerusalem Post

The faces of terror: ISIS, Al-Qaeda, drunken bros in chinos with socks and sandals.