virginiad's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Los Angeles, California

Museum of Tolerance

A multimedia experience that chronicles the atrocities of racism.
San Simeon, California

Hearst Castle

The unbelievably opulent home built for an infamous newspaperman.
Calistoga, California

Castello di Amorosa

California's own medieval Italian castle, authentic down to the 300-year-old iron maiden in the dungeon.
Ludlow, California

Ludlow

One of the ghostly stops along Route 66.
San Francisco, California

Short Story Vending Machine

With the touch of a button, you can read a randomly selected short story.
San Diego, California

Whaley House

San Diego's most historic and haunted home.
Santa Clarita, California

Air Hollywood

No matter what it might seem like on film, most scenes filmed on a plane are filmed at this LA studio.
Los Angeles, California

Thompson Home

Nancy Thompson's Home from "A Nightmare on Elm Street."
Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society

World's oldest operating science fiction and fantasy club, once home to Ray Bradbury and L. Ron Hubbard.
San Francisco, California

Faery Door

San Franciscans leave gifts and messages for the magical beings that live behind the tiny, mysterious door installed on a tree in Golden Gate Park.
San Francisco, California

Mission Dolores Cemetery

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

Amboy Ghost Town

The ghost town that ended up on Ebay.
Bridgeport, California

Bodie State Historic Park

Standing in a state of "arrested decay," this ghost town allows for a detailed peek into Gold Rush life in an unusually harsh climate.
Silverado, California

Black Star Canyon

The site of murders and Satanic cult gatherings.
Mono County, California

Hot Creek Geological Site

This naturally heated mountainous creek has created a group of neon blue pools of potentially deadly boiling water.
Newberry Springs, California

Rock-A-Hoola Waterpark

The "Fun Spot of the Desert" is now a haunting ruin, and a reminder that putting a water park in a desert is a bad idea.
Cabazon, California

Cabazon Dinosaurs

The "world's biggest dinosaur" once housed a creationist museum in its abdomen.
Los Angeles, California

Heritage Square Museum

Beautiful Victorian buildings from L.A.'s forgotten architectural past.
Napa, California

Monticello Dam Morning Glory Spillway

The largest drain hole in the world.
Los Angeles, California

Holyland Exhibition

Small museum packed with artifacts recovered by the man rumored to be the real-life inspiration for Indiana Jones.
Los Angeles, California

Chemosphere

This ultra-modern home clings to the slope of the Hollywood Hills on a precarious stilt.
San Francisco, California

Portals of the Past

The remains of a ruined mansion memorialize the 1906 earthquake.
Los Angeles, California

Cactus Store

The neighborhood shop is a sort of tiny cactus museum full of exotic specimens you can take home.
San Francisco, California

Golden Gate Park Bison

San Francisco's urban bison herd has persisted in the face of extinction, development, and disease.