Iconic pyramid from famed British architect Norman Foster designed to represent all of the world's religious faiths.

The lovely lake that was naturally dammed, then naturally destroyed, then unnaturally saved.

Rusting ships sit in a desert where a sea used to be.

Granny Smiths and Fujis can both be traced back to Kazakhstan, where apples still grow wild.

A shrine contains nearly 200 statues of the Buddhist deity Jizo, dressed in bibs by parents who have lost a child.

This little known mountain has claimed four times as many lives as Everest.

Unusual hexagonal rocks formed by cooling lava named for their resemblance to traditional Japanese tatami mats.

This bridge is so steep it looks like a rollercoaster.

The largest of the Fuji Five Lakes is home to an impressive swan population—some real, some with paddles, and one with an observation deck.

The giant figure on the back of this turtle-shaped temple actually hides a memorial pendulum.

These Japanese ruins have been brought back to life with elaborately recreated buildings.

One of the largest producers of MSG in the world welcomes visitors to its Kawasaki factory with an albino panda named Aji-Kun.

Giant sand sculptures of famous people and places are on display near the Tottori sand dunes.

Burial mound for the ears and noses of thousands of mutilated Korean soldiers.

The ruin of a Japanese love hotel almost completely overgrown with brambles.

The third-tallest statue in the world depicts the "Buddha of Infinite Light," complete with observation deck in his chest.

After a short 5 year run, this former major theme park sits in ruin.

Children's literature inside, forest all around.

Each year this Japanese temple overflows with scowling, bearded good luck talismans.

The ruins of Japan’s premier water brothel.

A Japanese shrine to dolls.

This sawtooth mountain range still bears the strangely lovely marks of its history as a medieval quarry.

This ruined Japanese stripclub sits half burnt to the ground.

The tallest bronze seated statue of the Buddha in Japan.