adriaan's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Ravenna, Italy

Baptistery of Neon

Psychoanalyst Carl Jung reported a paranormal experience after visiting this mosaic-lined Roman baptistry.
Ravenna, Italy

Mausoleum of Galla Placidia

An incredible mosaic-lined monument said to have held the remains of an ancient Roman empress.
Ravenna, Italy

Basilica of San Vitale

This 6th-century church has the largest and best-preserved collection of Byzantine mosaics outside Constantinople.
Ravenna, Italy

Mausoleum of Theoderic

The roof of this ancient mausoleum is made from a single Istrian stone weighing a massive 230 tons.
Classe, Italy

Sarcophagi of the Basilica of Sant'Apollinare in Classe

Numerous stone coffins from different centuries, lined up in a sixth century basilica.
Heidelberg, Germany

Heidelberg Tun

Sitting in the basement of a castle, the largest wine barrel in the world is bigger than most apartments.
Heidelberg, Germany

Heidelberger Bergbahnen

This historic funicular system combines the old with the new while offering delightful views over the surrounding valley.
Heidelberg, Germany

Heidelberg Bridge Monkey

It's good luck to be mocked by this monkey.
Vleteren, Belgium

Westvleteren

Stocking up on the world's best beer requires a pilgrimage to a monastery drive-through.
Bruges, Belgium

Basilica of the Holy Blood

Christ's blood preserved in a Belgian town.
Tübingen, Germany

Pi-Chacán

This giant statue of a vulva became internationally famous after an American exchange student got stuck in it.
Trier, Germany

Porta Nigra

The last bastion of Roman presence north of the Alps looms over a German town.
Trier, Germany

Karl Marx House

The birthplace of Karl Marx is now a museum dedicated to the communist revolutionary's life and work.
Andermatt, Switzerland

Teufelsbrucke

A breathtaking bridge that crosses a vast gorge over a river's torrents, and has a tale of a devil architect attached.
Obergoms VS, Switzerland

Hotel Belvédère

A once-thriving hotel in the Swiss Alps couldn't compete with climate change.
Lichtenstein, Germany

Lichtenstein Castle

A striking 12th-century-style castle built on the edge of a cliff.
Stelvio, Italy

Stelvio Pass

One of the highest mountain passes in Europe has been ranked among the best driving roads in the world.
Rome, Italy

Elephant and Obelisk

A detailed pachyderm supports Rome's smallest Egyptian obelisk.
Moab, Utah

Landscape Arch

The fifth-longest natural arch in the world, and the longest outside China.
Beveren, Belgium

The Doomed City of Doel

This ghost town in Belgium will lose its street art when it ceases to exist.
Dinant, Belgium

The Charles de Gaulle Saxophone Bridge

A whimsical bridge uses saxophones to pay tribute to two great men and the European Union.
Tielt-Winge, Belgium

Vlooybergtoren

The "stairway to heaven" lookout tower was built to resist weather, arson, and the laws of physics.
Cassino, Italy

Montecassino Abbey

This breathtaking monastery was established by Saint Benedict himself 1,500 years ago.
Mons, Belgium

The Passenger

A 141-foot wave of crashing lumber guards the entrance to the Grand Place in Mons.