An old whaling station now serves to give the public a look at the commercial whaling industry, no longer a part of Monterey's economy.

An eccentric home stands out in an otherwise average neighborhood with mosaics, mini topiaries, and kinetic sculpture.

California's own majestic geyser is powered by a subterranean volcano.

This concrete ship has had four careers - World War I tanker, floating amusement park, fishing pier, and artificial reef.

The haunting ruins of Jack London's dream house.

A "gravitational anomaly" located in the redwood forests just outside of Santa Cruz, California.

This giant shopping mall still holds signs of its automotive past.

A Roman-inspired temple once controlled half of San Francisco's waters.

A classically inspired temple in Redwood City.

The former Naval shipyard is open for exploring - mostly.

Where the polar bear watches over everything, and every drink is a double.

A rough granite monument marks the spot where Europeans first caught sight of the San Francisco Bay.

Neoclassical Revival mansion and set of horror cult classic Phantasm.

Odd stone and concrete monuments in the "Poet of the Sierras" eclectic folly garden.

Abandoned landscape once home to "the world's largest winery."

Handmade treasures from around the world.

Oakland's beautiful monumental cemetery.

An "anarchical" no man's land, complete with garbage sculptures and a hobo-run "Landfillian Library."

Julia Morgan's Moorish-Gothic labyrinth of fountains, trees, natural light and Oakland's notable dead.

An amazing collection of fantastic reptiles, amphibians, spiders, and insects.

A 90-acre park on former landfill that hosts an annual kite festival.

A massive ultra-modern church presents a science-fiction view of Catholicism's inclusive future.

A playground built by the kids that is a child's wonderland, and a helicopter parent's nightmare.

An abandoned convention space that has been left to the homeless and the radical.