As such, during the late Qing reforms, mahjong became considered a social issue. Mahjong started to become outlawed indirectly as gambling and smoking opium became criminalized. The ban was not very successful, however, at least until the Chinese cultural revolution.

Why are American mahjong sets the most expensive? American mahjong sets have 166 tiles (Chinese sets only have 144) and include a set of racks to hold the tiles. More tiles, the addition of racks, and a larger box makes the entire set more expensive.

WASHINGTON  A historic Transylvanian castle that may have once imprisoned Vlad the Impaler  likely inspiration for Bram Stoker's Dracula  still stands today.

Since then, the book has never gone out-of-print and it's inspired an endless stream of visitors to what's known as Dracula's Castle in Romania. Although it's not possible to stay in the castle, you can explore it alone or as part of a tour group.