Historic funicular railway, believed to be the shortest railroad in the world.

Scores of vintage street lamps shine along L.A.’s Miracle Mile.

Aqueducts have dramatically changed this old lake, now home to tufa towers and its very own species of tiny brine shrimp.

This strange seaside tower got its name from a wealthy eccentric who would hide coins among its stones.

A trash dump made beautiful by nature's power.

This iconic L.A. bookshop is housed in an abandoned bank—both symbolic and chic.

An iconic location along the Los Angeles River where countless movie scenes are filmed.

This stately structure has been abandoned for half a century.

A natural dome made of volcanic glass in Inyo National Forest.

The arch that celebrated the completion of the Lincoln and Victory highways.

This Nevada lake holds its titular natural pyramid and, if the legends are true, a number of dangerous spirits.

The lowest point in North America is home to an undrinkable pool surrounded by fields of geometric salt flats.

Millions of years of oxidation make a drive down this winding Death Valley road surprisingly colorful.

The now-abandoned tunnels were built for the transcontinental railroad on the route where the first wagon train entered California.

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

A new sculpture calls attention to climate change in the centuries-old city it threatens.

This community on a small Venetian island has taken to painting their houses in bright neon hues.

A copy of the famous statue can be found in this Florence piazza, along with one of the most breathtaking views of the city below.

The best preserved Paleochristian basilica in Rome hides a number of oddities and secrets.

Medieval torture techniques with a modern conscience.

Rome's semi-secret peephole vista is also a former Crusader stronghold.

The middle finger of modernity.

Smooth basaltic rocks tell a tale of ancient glacial waterfalls.

The ghostly remains of an accidental sea.