Venice's "Island of the Mad."

The doodles of a genius line the walls of a secret room under the Medici Chapel, where they were hidden for nearly 500 years.

2300-year-old Roman road connecting the empire.

Sitting on an Italian hilltop is this surreal fortress built by the mad inventor of electrohomeopathy.

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

Geothermal waterfalls in Tuscany.

According to the local folklore, the myriad colors of this lake are the result of a lovelorn wizard's blunder.

Stalactites and stalagmites in a beautifully lit cave.

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

The middle finger of modernity.

Renaissance villa and gardens complete with a tormented colossus.

This hidden Art Nouveau courtyard is an opulent feast for the eyes.

A master of trompe-l'oeil creates a stunning, tourist-fooling dome out of a flat ceiling.

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

Architectureal fantasy quarter of Rome.

This Venice bookstore has resigned itself to constant flooding by keeping its books in bathtubs and boats.

An Italian crevasse filled with abandoned buildings gives visitors a look at the world without humans.