The medieval castle built as headquarters for the Pope's secretive Knights Templar.

Madrid's romantically ornate crystal palace has been offering shelter to plants and art for over a century.

The once highest point in China blends symbolic design with a kick of adrenaline.

An out-of-place slice of France, smack in the middle of Shanghai.

The burial grounds of a Chinese eunuch who served his way into the highest levels of Imperial government.

Home to over 200,000 artifacts, this museum attempts to guide visitors through the ancient history of Beijing and Imperial China.

The most famous location in China was home to whole dynasties worth of imperial rulers.

This historic Chinese tower was said to have been haunted by fox spirits but is now haunted by a grisly murder.

A shrine built to combat the bad karma of a commercial venture.

Bangkok celebrated its shifting monarchy with a militaristic homage to democracy.

A colorful kitschy temple and floating market off the beaten path.

This elephant kraal is the only one remaining in Thailand, dating back to the 16th century when these massive mammals were integral players in war and trade.

The headquarters of the Mahanikai school of Buddhism, Thailand's largest monastic order.

Malaysia's floating mosque.

Ferdinand Magellan dubbed the world's largest water village the "Venice of the East."

A monument to Lenin has been transformed into a statue of everyone's favorite black-helmeted, fool-choking Sith Lord.

A forgotten remnant of the Soviet Union, Transnistria is an unrecognized country hidden behind a heavily militarized border between Moldova and Ukraine.

This abandoned Soviet circus is slowly being restored to its Communist-era glory.

The largest wine cellar in the world is a 150-mile network of underground caves near the capital of Moldova.

340-foot statue built to honour the Heroes of the Soviet Union.

This 1000 year old relic-filled cave monastery and UNESCO World Heritage Site also hosts an amazing micro-miniature museum.

One of the largest museums in Ukraine remembers the story of the German-Soviet War in iconic, brutalist style.

The deepest metro station in the world.

An Art Nouveau building covered in animal gargoyles and grotesques.