A building facade covered with the statues of 11 giants of Tajik literature.

This Russian religious complex is a Frankenstein's chapel that includes influence from almost all the major faiths.

Breathtaking Byzantine paintings cover the inside of this 12th-century church.

A former military outpost of Ivan the Terrible, the 16th-century church contains some of the rarest examples of Eastern Orthodox mural paintings.

This 700-year-old Cyprus castle is the birthplace of the world's oldest wine, said to be toasted by Richard the Lionheart at his wedding.

The bridges portrayed on EU currency aren't fictional anymore.

The premier place to experience the Victorian imagining of the steam-powered future.

Iceland's only steampunk shop imagines a retro-futuristic world that never was.

The complex has been abandoned since the Croatian War of Independence, barring a stint as a set for 'Game of Thrones.'

This impressive system of tanks was used to store drinking water as long as 2,000 years ago.

Elaborate patterns adorn the city's disappearing traditional architecture.

One of the most remote and isolated villages on the Arabian Peninsula.

Yemen's "Stone Palace" looks like it was carved right out of the tall stone column on which it is built.

The highest tides in the world come in and out here twice a day, allowing you to essentially walk along the ocean floor.

A mesmerizing reservoir nestled at the heart of a pre-Islamic Yemeni village.

The 43-mile route crosses through six islands with gorgeous views of the Seto Inland Sea.

A celebration of solstice followed by a fiery purging of evils.

A portable, wooden replica (minus the hyphen) of Hamburg’s iconic crooked coffee shop.

Putting the "mod" in "modular" since 2000.

Modern commuters still pass through this 2,000-year-old Roman archway.

The Grand Lodge of Ireland is one of the oldest in the world, full of fantastical, elaborately themed rooms.

An Anglo-Saxon cross inscribed with possibly the oldest written work of English literature.

An ancient Viking runestone hidden in plain view in Stockholm's old town.

A bike train runs along a disused railway line through the tranquil French countryside.