An ancient Viking village in North America that predates Columbus by 500 years.

These serpents are considered holy and pampered accordingly.

Myanmar's Mount Olympus atop a 2,500-foot volcanic plug.

Over 2,000 ancient temples dot the Myanmar landscape at the site of this famed archaeological site.

Rock-cut caves and 7,000 Buddhist sculptures carved into the nearly sheer face of a sandstone mountain.

This weekly market in the remote oasis city of Hotan still has the atmosphere of the old Silk Road.

A lush desert oasis in the shape of a narrow crescent.

Enormous statue of the Emperor of the Mongols.

A huge communist-era propaganda monument and mural that offers stunning views of the Mongolian capital.

World's oldest and largest space launch facility, once a secret missile testing site.

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

Extremely isolated Silk Road caravanserai in the middle of nowhere.

Final palace complex of the last of 29 Kokand rulers.

Light still pours into the ruins of this ancient Islamic observatory.

Looking for a unifying history, Uzbekistan finds its answer in a 14th Century Turco-Mongol conqueror... despite the fact he wasn't Uzbek.

The Avenue of Mausolea is a series of grand palatial tombs.

This "tower of death" has acted as an observatory, a religious hub, and an executioner's lair.

Once a bustling fishing port, this semi-ghost town is now more than 90 miles away from the shore.

A cemetery with goat-horn bedecked gravestones.

This cavernous swimming spot doubles as a home to the largest known colony of bats in Central Asia.

A fiery crater has been burning in the Karakum Desert since 1971.

A shrine of fire worship built on top of a natural flame.

Luxury hotel turned into a refugee camp, then turned back into a luxury hotel.

This Armenian monastery was carved out of cliffs and named after the spear used to stab Jesus.