A shop full of natural curiosities, carnivorous plants, and costumed taxidermied mice.

A nondescript building that's been functioning as a speakeasy for nearly a century and a half.

A collection of 20th-century automata, penny arcade games, and musical contraptions.

Relics of the 1894 Midwinter Exposition continue to delight visitors today.

Olfactory delights in San Francisco's Botanical Gardens.

San Francisco's newly reopened hands-on science museum.

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

Carnivorous plants, medieval aphrodisiacs, and the largest original wood structure glass conservatory in the western hemisphere.

There is no trying to fall in love with this Star Wars fountain, you just do or do not.

Its buzzing collection honors vibrator history.

A winding path built in secret on the edge of the continent.

This shop specializes in oddities and Victorian-inspired wonders.

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

Bring your own cardboard to the slippery slopes of concrete hidden in a neighborhood park.

An artsy hidden staircase leads to breathtaking views of San Francisco.

A huge musical instrument played by the ocean.

Rome's ancient Etruscan rival, now a park full of ruins.

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

These ornate manhole covers were used for a now-forgotten purpose.

The most confusing clock in New York.

A small peaceful park and waterfall tucked amid the urban grind of Midtown Manhattan.

This exemplar of modernist architecture is meant to captivate and inspire students of the Cooper Union.

Avoid gangster interaction while window-shopping.

This whimsical group of statues is a favorite of children who love to climb all over Lewis Carroll's beloved characters.