A Japanese temple, old German townhouses, and public chess tables offer a peaceful escape from the bustle of the North Side.

Former meatpacking facility turned vertical farm and sustainable business complex.

This cheerfully-named branch of the Chicago River is the fetid result of years of blood, entrails, and meatpacking waste.

The clothes-washing king doubles as a community center with some unusual features, including an aviary filled with finches.

A source of civic pride, though the reason for its construction is unknown.

The house is an iconic pilgrimage site for fans of the Illinois-based emo band.

This world-class vineyard has a peculiar collection of contemporary sculptures scattered across the property.

Legend says Dungeons and Dragons players can get their dice blessed at the creator of the game's memorial.

The spaceship-like theater, which is still in use, was one of the most popular exhibits at the 1964 New York World's Fair.

Wisconsin's most celebrated export gets the royal treatment on I-94.

Behind a modern brick exterior lies the oldest continuously-operating lunch-car diner in the United States.

A river with some unusual, and occasionally dangerous, habits.

This sprawling mini-golf empire is an impressive testament to a disappearing attraction.

This antique shop offers affordable 15th-century Vietnamese ceramics salvaged from a local shipwreck.

Middle-earth in the middle of Switzerland.

A bizarre roadside attraction and the first instance of miniature golf in the world.

Crumbling Kennedys and a decaying Tecumseh are just some of the haunting remains of one man's cement art trail.

The ruins of a creative scholar's fantastical unfinished sanctuary act as his massive gravestone.

The pan man stands as a testament to the functionality of American cast iron cookware.

This stone incorrectly marks the 35th parallel, causing some territorial kerfuffles.

This papier-mâché diorama celebrates an unusual landmark: the brightly-colored runoff from a local sock factory.

Working compound meant to allow visitors to reclaim the values and traditions of the past.

The longest living non-clonal organisms on Earth.

Bioluminescence in the reefs of the Maldives causes the sea to glow like a starry night sky.