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

An abandoned beach resort in Normandy reclaimed by artists.

The Sun King's military models, saved from the Louvre.

The encased skull that is widely believed to belong to St. John the Baptist.

An iconic and eccentric bar for "Manouche" Jazz music keeps expanding its space—and its influence.

A museum which takes visitors to the côté obscure of Paris.

There has been an astronomical clock on this spot since the 14th century.

The oldest and smallest cemetery in Paris is only open to the public twice a year.

One of the largest ochre quarries in the world, hidden in a limestone landscape.

An odd museum dedicated to French fakes.

A French artist's vague warning hangs over Belleville.

The post-apocalyptic remnants of a bucolic town ruined by a plane crash.

This futuristic observatory at the top of the Pyrénées offers unrivaled views.

Located in the house where Gustave Flaubert was born, this odd museum has more to do with medical grotesquery than the Western novel.

A French library that makes sure its love of books is writ large... giant in fact.

This ancient theater was once the home of fierce gladiatorial battles.

This crumbling, graffiti-covered mansion sits tantalizingly within reach of the proletariat who frequent a public park.

One of the world's most complex timepieces.

A colossal sculptural lion built by the same man who designed the Statue of Liberty.

The remaining relics of the patroness of Paris lie in a chapel under a striking double spiral staircase.

A 400-year-old church covered floor to ceiling in ex-voto offerings from the faithful.

Ordinary art transforms to extraordinary thanks to locals' quirky sense of humor.

The industrial architecture honors the laborers who brought the Exposition Universelle of 1900 to life.

Despite centuries of architectural innovation, this French castle is being built like it's the 13th century.