A curious whirlpool formation supposedly capable of entangling or engulfing branches, tree trunks, or whole rafts full of hapless tourists.

This ruined fortress was the stronghold for a persecuted medieval leader and his infamous Assassins.

These stairs were built to accommodate royals mounted on elephants.

The possible imprisonment of Vlad the Impaler here earned the medieval castle its nickname, "Dracula's Castle."

The Guardian of Tallinn.

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

This unique building in the main square stands out among the city's typically Baroque architecture.

One of the last surviving ancient Buddhist sites in the region, it escaped the brunt of several Hun invasions thanks to its remote location.

Hundreds of boat-shaped headstones fill this graveyard as part of a centuries-old custom with mysterious origins.

The mummified right fist of a 1,000-year-old saint-king sits inside an ornate golden reliquary.

This vineyard was the site of the infamous Charge of the Light Brigade.

Mirrors and glass shards cover every inch of this arrestingly beautiful mosque.

The haunting complex honors the millions of Ukrainians who died in the forced famine under Soviet rule.

Legend says these stone structures are where the doomed citizens of a vanished village sent themselves to die.

This monument honors the life of a long-suffering lion whose story captivated the world.

A sobering museum dedicated to landmines and the personnel working to remove them from Afghanistan.

This striking icon of the disputed Republic of Artsakh caused a stir at a Eurovision Song Contest.

This abandoned Soviet circus is slowly being restored to its Communist-era glory.

This candy shop has been serving up sweets to the Louisville area since the 1850s.

The sacred shrine of the Yazidis.

A cylinder monument with a spectacular vista commemorates a friendship that some say never existed.

An ancient fortified mound raised over the millennia from settlements built one on top of the other.

A remote monument to one of the fiercest battles fought by the Victorian British Army.

Every Friday, Sufi dervishes whirl around the tomb in a trance-like state as part of a sacred ritual called dhikr.