A mysterious painting of the self-declared Emperor of the United States watches over a local hof-brau.

A modern English garden of eccentric beasts, follies, and oddities.

The largest whiskey stash on the West Coast survived the 1906 fires--but not without heroic effort.

A giant pineapple, a symbol of hospitality, and an amazing vacation rental option.

A petite castle folly in the English countryside.

An art supply shop holds the secrets of this quiet neighborhood's raucous Barbary Coast past.

This small collection of rare books was uniquely locked up for safe keeping.

The oldest volcanology research center in the world.

London's old-school healing garden.

The oldest of Venice's plague quarantine stations, designed to keep the medieval city safe from disease.

A traveling postal dog covered 48 states and more than 140,000 miles, and he lives on as taxidermy, patched up with a rabbit's foot and a pig's ear.

The final stronghold of a king whose feet never touched the ground.

The most loyal of little dogs, or a Victorian era publicity stunt?

A Barbary Coast watering hole built into a Gold Rush shipwreck.

The first island in the world designated a light-pollution-free astronomical observation point.

"The most colorful grottoes of the world.

A vast collection of rare books, manuscripts & extraordinary objects illustrating the history of medicine.

Recently restored menagerie of Victorian-era beasts.

Three vintage horses survived a 1976 inferno and found a home on a sister carousel.

Pompeii's less famous neighbor is still revealing her secrets.

A small statue of child Jesus given by Magellan in 1521

Barely visible foundations remain where Stow Lake’s “observatory” once welcomed visitors.

Sacred waters rescued from the wrath of a volcano.

A harem-inspired Moorish fantasy design in a Victorian-era Welsh castle.