This museum was invented in a novel before being made real by the author.

A marvel of Byzantine engineering under the streets of Istanbul.

Billed as the "largest natural flower garden in the world" this Middle Eastern show field has little competition at 45 million flowers.

A faithful reproduction of Al-Jazari's enormous water clock.

A powerful cyclone once made one of the world's largest sinkholes completely fill with water.

Where artisans use centuries-old techniques to build traditional Arabian ships.

Traditional architecture and ancient irrigation systems are on display in this gorgeous mountain village.

This remote British Imperial telegraph relay outpost drove men insane.

These gnarly desert trees produce the prized aromatic resin traded along the ancient incense trail.

This lonely tomb is all that remains of a once-bustling ancient trade hub visited by Marco Polo.

Some claim these desert ruins are from the legendary "Atlantis of the Sands."

Groups of prehistoric tombs that dot the mountains of northern Oman.

An imposing Omani fortress surrounded by date palm trees.

Nature's water park in the Wadi Bani Awf valley is full of pools flanked with cliffs and natural water slides.

A marvel of technology a century ago, this disused power station now offers a lovely glimpse into the industrial design of the past.

Legions of Roman soldiers bathed in this ancient spa complex under a Budapest transit station.

This statue of a falling man commemorates a teenage martyr of the Hungarian Revolution.

A fake Transylvanian castle houses a cathedral of antlers.

This hidden art nouveau gem was designed by an architect in search of a national style.

A museum dedicated to a secret military hospital hidden beneath a castle in Budapest.

Uh, pardon me, ma'am, but I couldn't help noticing that there's a Columbo statue in the middle of Budapest.

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

Sitting beneath an unremarkable residential building is a museum devoted to classic Pinball.

Tucked away near more famous landmarks lies a statue meant to symbolize the confluence and continuing development of human culture.