If you're not Muslim, but think this sounds like an interesting place to visit, too bad—it's forbidden to infidels.
But that doesn't mean those outside the faith have never seen it. There have been infiltrators, and one in particular has a really strange story to tell.
Richard Francis Burton was an adventurer, scholar and “sexual explorer” that lived from 1821 to 1890. He was adept to learning new languages and managed to learn 24 to 40, including the dialects.
He joined the military after being thrown out of Oxford and was posted to India, where he showed a knack for being a spy.
He made a six month journey to Mecca disguised as an Afghan Muslim in 1853. He kissed the sacred black stone, a religious event most Muslims dream of doing, and explored the city with care, making sure to blend in the whole time.
He survived.
His other claim to fame? He translated the Kama Sutra in all of its sexual glory. He probably didn't even bat an eye at anything it contained.
