The USSR’s Conquest of Nature lead to the domestication of many moose—no squirrel.

Dozens of padlock-trees along the Moscow River.

The world's first museum dedicated to the work of game-changing naturalist Charles Darwin.

A dormant lightning machine equal to all the power in Russia.

Dark, eerie exhibits make for a surreal exploration of the subconscious.

A remote forest of stone pillars along the Lena river.

Site of the largest impact event to occur over land in Earth's recorded history.

The world's second-largest excavated hole.

The reason for the strange contortions in the trunks of these "drunken" pine trees in Russia is still a mystery.

Nightmarish example of the unintended consequences of weapons testing.

Secret Soviet city once home to Russian cosmonauts and space training facilities.

A sculpture park of the tossed aside relics of the USSR, from Stalin to a massive Soviet emblem.

A little church on a tiny island looks like something from a fairy tale.

Legends of time travel and magical woodland creatures bolster the natural charm of this verdant sanctuary in the midst of Moscow.

This Russian religious complex is a Frankenstein's chapel that includes influence from almost all the major faiths.

Stunning examples of Russia's 18th-century wooden architecture.

Immortal combat in a Moscow museum.

Thirteen sculptures in central Moscow graphically depicting vices of the modern world.

It's hard to believe the dizzying patterns covering this abandoned mine are completely natural.

This building holds the embalmed remains of the leader of the Bolshevik Revolution.

Dr. Strangelove-esque tours reveal the inside a bunker once reserved for Stalin himself.

This ancient village and its adjoining cemetery have a beautiful history of death and remembrance.

You'll find rocket launchers, not rollercoasters, at Russia's “military Disneyland.”

One of the most well-preserved mammoth specimens in the world.