Not merely a museum – but a whirring powerhouse that offers a subterranean peek into the heart and soul of cable car operations.

A 300-ship graveyard, with a few still visible at low tide.

San Francisco's oldest surviving monument and meeting place for 1906 survivors.

The oldest burial ground in the city, final resting place of city founders, Ohlone natives and murderers alike.

The last remaining relic of San Francisco's glittering 1915 Panama Pacific Exposition.

Staircase winds down the side of Telegraph Hill through gardens, wild parrots flying overhead.

An essential stop before plundering, BYO Cutlass.

The tea room that pushed the boundaries of adorable straight into...we can't find the words.

The one-time watch house for incoming ships at the Golden Gate now stands abandoned and hidden in trees.

Get lost in this haunting fairytale art walk through a man-made eucalyptus grove.

Relics of the 1894 Midwinter Exposition continue to delight visitors today.

The seawater playground of gilded-era San Francisco burned to the ground in 1966.

Olfactory delights in San Francisco's Botanical Gardens.

Carnivorous plants, medieval aphrodisiacs, and the largest original wood structure glass conservatory in the western hemisphere.

San Francisco's newly reopened hands-on science museum.

A walk-in working camera obscura produces 360-degree live images of the San Francisco coast.

A winding path built in secret on the edge of the continent.

In all of the 29 years it was in operation, no prisoners ever escaped successfully... or so they claim.

A 140-year-old castle with underground caves hidden in San Francisco.

A huge musical instrument played by the ocean.

An artsy hidden staircase leads to breathtaking views of San Francisco.

A prime example of New Orleans' unique architecture these early 20th century homes were built to look like steamboats.

A small park on Bourbon Street features life-size bronze statues of New Orleans musicians.

The stone labyrinth in this New Orleans city park was laid to symbolize healing in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.