According to a satirical conspiracy theory that persists today, this German city of 300,000 is a hoax invented by the CIA.

Every hour the doors open to reenact the legend of the heroic mayor who saved his town by drinking a gallon of wine.

A long, winding trek rewards you with a gorge so captivating it inspired a painting in the Tate.

1513 Turkish world map, full of European state secrets and snarky commentary.

Five sultans and their families rest in eternal splendor, teeming with overlooked beauty and drama.

Mausoleum and Holy Seat of Antiochus I of Commagene.

Once described as the "Eagle's Nest," this ruined ancient city rests on a remote mountaintop.

A Lycian city of the dead carved into the hillside of Southern Turkey, complete with startlingly human touches.

This famous city eluded concrete detection until the early 2000's.

Roman ruins top white travertine terraces formed by ancient hot springs.

This legendary city has been a tourist attraction for centuries.

The hallucinogenic center of the ancient world.

Monasteries on rock pillars, once accessible only by frayed ropes.

Vast stretch of tide-pools with a unique Moroccan charm.

Traditional 11th-century outdoor tannery.

God's Saharan sandbox of wrath.

Thousands of narrow alleyways in an ancient medieval city make up what's believed to be the world's largest car-free urban zone.

One of the most spectacular canyons in the world.

Morocco's Argania trees are infested with nut-hungry goats.

Geometry and mystery come together in an epic show of octagonal masonry.

This ritzy Italian market is built around a statue of an unforgiven heretic who was burned for his belief in an endless universe.

Bell tower juts out from a village buried under a lake.

Hidden beneath the famous St. Peter's Basilica is a veritable city of the dead that may hold the remains of St. Peter himself.

The only "Egyptian" pyramid in Europe and the legendary tomb of Remus.