George from LAmpolla's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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San Francisco, California

Spreckels Temple of Music

An elaborate gift from Claus Spreckels is now a piece of San Francisco history.
San Francisco, California

Treasure Island

A man-made island in scenic San Francisco Bay.
San Francisco, California

Buena Vista Park Tombstones

Gold Rush-era tombstones line the park's paths.
San Francisco, California

Golden Gate Park Vintage Carousel

This turn of the century masterpiece has a mysterious goaty interloper.
San Francisco, California

San Francisco Botanical Garden

Golden Gate Park's historic collection of plants.
San Francisco, California

Lotta's Fountain

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

Vaillancourt Fountain

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

Palace of Fine Arts

The last remaining relic of San Francisco's glittering 1915 Panama Pacific Exposition.
San Francisco, California

The Parrots of Telegraph Hill

Staircase winds down the side of Telegraph Hill through gardens, wild parrots flying overhead.
San Francisco, California

Ruins of the Sutro Baths

The seawater playground of gilded-era San Francisco burned to the ground in 1966.
San Francisco, California

Garden of Fragrance

Olfactory delights in San Francisco's Botanical Gardens.
San Francisco, California

Japanese Tea Garden

Relics of the 1894 Midwinter Exposition continue to delight visitors today.
San Francisco, California

Alcatraz Island

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

Ludus Magnus

The ruins of the largest gladiatorial school in Rome are largely hidden under modern streets.
Rome, Italy

Elephant and Obelisk

A detailed pachyderm supports Rome's smallest Egyptian obelisk.
Rome, Italy

Via Appia

2300-year-old Roman road connecting the empire.
Rome, Italy

Torre Argentina (Roman Cat Sanctuary)

Hundreds of lucky felines haunt the ruins where Caesar was murdered.
Rome, Italy

The Mouth of Truth

The yawning maw of this pagan visage is said to bite off the hands of liars.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia City Hall

This elaborate towering structure was once famed for its revolutionary height.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Rocky Statue

Yo, Adrian!
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Giant Ants

Ant sculptures march up the side of what used to be an iconic spot in punk rock lore.
Paris, France

Le Stryge

This demon atop the Notre-Dame de Paris looks utterly bored.
Paris, France

Paris Padlocks of Love

The celebrated eyesore created by starry-eyed sweethearts.
Paris, France

The Bouquinistes of Paris

The tradition of open-air secondhand and antiquarian bookselling in Paris dates back to the Renaissance.