A beach made of semi-precious green sand on the Big Island of Hawai'i.

This black shoreline is made up of exploded lava particles.

Earth's tallest volcano is sacred to Native Hawaiians, and home to a dozen world-class observatories.

The only royal palace on U.S. soil has been a territorial capitol, a military headquarters, and a prison for a queen.

Renaissance villa and gardens complete with a tormented colossus.

Venice's island of the dead.

Thousand-year-old Viking runes adorn an ancient Greek lion at the entrance to the Venetian Arsenal.

Those who own or stay at this 500-year-old, allegedly cursed house often meet terrible fates.

Where Venice's gondolas go for a tune-up.

This Venice bookstore has resigned itself to constant flooding by keeping its books in bathtubs and boats.

A 16th-century horror show built in a lovely Italian garden.

Climbing to the top of the cathedral's bell tower offers sweeping views of these medieval ruins.

This communist behemoth is the heaviest building in the world and a legacy of a brutal regime.

Romania's triumphal arch looks out over Bucharest.

The European towns of Brașov and Râșnov each have proud signs reminiscent of the Hollywood sign.

This snug medieval lane is one of the narrowest streets in the world.

Something's watching you.

This elaborately decorated, fairytale-like Romanian royal palace is one of the most striking castles in Europe.

The possible imprisonment of Vlad the Impaler here earned the medieval castle its nickname, "Dracula's Castle."

A small town Romanian cemetery filled with darkly humorous gravestones.

This fairy-tale castle would make Dracula (who is said to have been imprisoned there) jealous.

A unique hotel for the artistic soul.

Extremely famous in his native country, this Cracovian painter is all but unknown beyond Polish borders.

St. Mary's features one of the most spectacularly decorated cathedral interiors in all of Europe.