Scroll down for an interactive map. IBTimes/Lisa Mahapatra

The toilets, the tap water and the local attitude toward stray dogs might be highly questionable, but there s one advantage to hanging out in Sochi, Russia if you re a smoker.

A pack of Marlboro (NYSE PM) cigarettes costs less than $2 in Russia, on average, according to Numbeo, a crowdsourced database of the prices of goods and services around the world.

But that’s not even the cheapest price of a pack. If you re willing to go to Pakistan for your nicotine fix, you can score a pack of Marlboros for just 98 cents.

A pack of Marlboros will set you back by more than 16 times that amount in Australia, where they cost $16.11, the most expensive place to purchase cigarettes. Overall, cigarettes tend to be more expensive in Europe and North America.

The average reported cost of a pack of Marlboros in the United States was $6. However, there is a fairly large spread of prices within the U.S. For a map of cigarette excise taxes and prices in each state, click here.

Here s a map of the 123 countries for which data was available on the Numbeo database. Click on any country to see how much a pack of Marlboros retails for, on average

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Data Visualization editor. CUNY J school alum. Business journalist at large. Loves cats, capitalism, string cheese, charts, jazz and data. I have opinions. I can journalism.<... Continue Reading More from Lisa Mahapatra more articles

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Should legal age to buy cigarettes be raised to 21? – around town – smithtown, ny patch

Discount cigarettes & smokeshop – hayward, ca
The Suffolk County Legislature is nearing a vote on a bill that would raise the legal age to purchase cigarettes and other tobacco products from 19 to 21.

Legis. William Spencer, D Centerport, is behind the bill and he&#39 s urging supporters to turn out to Tuesday&#39 s legislature meeting in Riverhead to make their voices heard.

If passed, the law would prohibit retailers from selling cigarettes, cigars, rolling papers, chewing tobacco, powdered tobacco or smoking pipes to anyone under the age of 21. Store owners would need to confirm identification before selling those products, similar to when they sell alcoholic beverages.

Spencer, an ENT doctor, has cited his desire to keep tobacco products away from young adults during the age in which they run the highest risk of addiction. He also believes the age hike would cut down on healthcare costs in the long run.

But the bill does face opposition, including from Legis. Tom Muratore, R Ronkonkoma.

&#34 I think at 19 you can make your own decisions,&#34 Muratore told Patch in January.
&#34 I don t think we need government to tell us you can do this, you can&#39 t do that.&#34

New York City has already raised the age to buy cigarettes to 21.

A public hearing on the Suffolk bill will be held at 2 30 p.m. Tuesday at the Evans K. Griffing Building, located at 300 Center Drive in Riverhead.

What do you think? Do you support raising the age to buy cigarettes in Suffolk County? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.