Trails through lava-carved tube-caves display sparkling bacteria and a rich history.

A nondescript building that's been functioning as a speakeasy for nearly a century and a half.

A faux European lane smack dab in downtown L.A.

Canyon walls shrouded in ferns.

Carved by a waterfall in a hard-to-reach rock formation, this heart-shaped rock has inspired romantics for decades.

A hotel and restaurant serving as the mecca of kitsch.

This strange seaside tower got its name from a wealthy eccentric who would hide coins among its stones.

Towering basalt columns, a creation of fire and ice.

A strange house built only at night, with rumored mystic inspiration.

Giant Redwood-themed cafeteria operates under the golden rule, "Dine Free Unless Delighted."

Rainbow-hued local gem in Venice.

Every weekend, the parking lot of this Buddhist temple turns into a Thai street-food paradise.

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

A common entry point to the Griffith Observatory trail holds its own wonders.

The programmatic glory of LA's giant whiskey barrel building has become an upscale reminder of the city's kitschy roadside past.

The last of its kind in the country.

Historic marionette theater features thousands of handmade puppets and free cups of ice cream.

A ghost town at the airport is now a refuge for blue butterflies.

After starting as a whimsical tourist attraction that eventually found its way to ruin, these renovated canals offer a lush and exotic locale on the Pacific Coast.

This Los Angeles animation studio is keeping the wonder of stop motion puppetry alive.

Panorama exhibition hall in old silent theater with a beautiful backyard garden.

World-famous, Pink's still manages to keep its prized cult fetish status.

A look into the Church of Scientology's deeply unfavorable view of psychiatry.

These delicate buggers are some of the rarest fossils that have bubbled up from the Tar Pits.