Poetic, metallic giraffes adorn a square off an Edinburgh thoroughfare.

This otherwise ordinary close on the Royal Mile constituted the end of the world for Edinburgh’s poorest residents.

The most loyal of little dogs, or a Victorian era publicity stunt?

Overlooked by many, the two famous Scottish warriors guard the main gate of Edinburgh Castle.

The highest peak in the United Kingdom has a history of physics, specters, and a pilgrimage of strange objects.

A church that bred legends, and served as an inspiration for the Da Vinci Code.

Ruined 11th century abbey built by King David I in Edinburgh, Scotland.

The most iconic structure in Scotland has been home to bishops, colonels, and Sean Connery characters.

17th century streets hidden under Edinburgh were once a breeding ground for the black death.

These fantastically named natural pools look like something out of a Scottish myth.

Annual technopop celebration of peace and love.

Vienna's giant wonder wheel had a starring role in one of the greatest noir movies of all time.

Op-art architecture designed for happiness.

The topiary maze at the Habsburg hunting lodge.

Budapest's Communist-era statues, banished to the suburbs.

A monument to the three wars that led to German unification towers within a Berlin traffic circle.

Cold war icon and onetime "hole" in the iron curtain.

Berlin's old airport.

The bunker where Hitler took his own life is hidden under this deliberately ordinary parking lot.

Thousands of coffin-like pillars make up this controversial Holocaust memorial.

"Holy Wisdom" overlooks the city that became its namesake.

Sofia's legislative center is continuously reinventing itself.

A striking symbol of the Bulgarian capital.

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