After serving in World War II and picking up Apollo astronauts, this aircraft carrier has been turned into a museum overlooking the San Francisco Bay.

This concrete tangle of square pipes has stood as a proud thorn in the city's side since the '70s.

This tall and trim architectural oddity is one of the skinniest buildings in San Francisco.

A pair of mutilated bronze octopuses slump at the base of the monument honoring California's admission to the U.S.

A library built during San Francisco's pioneer times is a student's retreat, bibliophile's sanctuary, and chess player's delight.

San Francisco's oldest surviving monument and meeting place for 1906 survivors.

The second building of its name to occupy this location might be the finest flatiron building in San Francisco.

A historic hotel that made a cameo in Hitchcock's classic film has no intention of letting guests forget its fame.

In all of the 29 years it was in operation, no prisoners ever escaped successfully... or so they claim.

A huge musical instrument played by the ocean.

One of the last remnants of the city's Chinese nightclub scene is now a dive bar selling killer mai tais.

Its buzzing collection honors vibrator history.

The massive, original Colgate Clock is mounted on a defunct factory building that was once a prison.

The ancient dwellings of the Puebloans, located in the cliffs of majestic mesas.

A whimsical roadside community of little metal people.

A breathtaking array of ancient Pueblo structures and artifacts counterintuitively preserved by neglect.

A giant lumpy candle serves as a beacon for this highly scented pit stop.

You thought Santa Claus didn't exist, but it turns out you were wrong.

A turn-of-the-century architectural marvel built on healing mineral springs and salt licks.

A historic hotel library in Indiana hides more than a few secrets on its shelves.

The longest navigable underground river in the United States is home to countless blind and albino animals.

The bespectacled, cocktail-sipping pachyderm is a strange but fitting liquor store mascot.

This shop is named for a runaway elephant who smashed through its doors, stole some peanuts, and spent five days on the lam.

A bronze of the man in all his sinewy glory celebrates his longtime connection to the Ohio city.