Lonely minaret stump of a destroyed city.

This retro, UFO-like structure is a remnant of the Soviet-era circus.

Tower with a double-helix spiral, adorned with letters of the Georgian alphabet.

Fast food feels like fine dining at this award-winning modern Georgian building.

A gleaming white and undulating tower marks the border between Georgia and Turkey.

The first skyscraper to include a Ferris wheel built into the facade.

This massive stone and steel monument remembers a century-old battle that cost thousands of lives and nearly destroyed the city.

An homage to the medieval rulers of Bulgaria.

A gigantic statue of a Russian soldier watches over the ancient city of Plovdiv, a prominent reminder of the Soviet period in Bulgaria.

A mountain pass in Bulgaria's Balkan Mountains was the site of four historic battles.

A magnificent, glittering building tucked into a tiny Bulgarian mountain town.

This ancient theater, restored in the 20th century, lives on as a venue for dramatic and musical performances.

No one is sure if the world's fourth-largest diamond had been found in a rubbish heap or was pawned by Napoleon's mom.

A marvel of Byzantine engineering under the streets of Istanbul.

One of the famous Czech artist's lesser-known Prague installations appears to be a glowing fetus affixed to a drainpipe.

This tipsy office building in downtown Prague was originally called “Fred and Ginger.”

Macabre astrological automaton clock dating to the late 1400s.

An abstract monument to a symphonic composer.

This irregularly shaped sea fortress has defended not one but three different sovereign states.

A subterranean house of worship carved right out of the bedrock.

This exclusive resort has completely covered a tiny Balkan island in a 5-star warren of guest rooms.

These historic defenses ensured the city within would survive hundreds of years of occupations, sieges, and invasions.

A tiny church on a man-made island in the Adriatic.

A whimsical bridge adorned with decorative dragons.