One of few lasting examples of the brief octagon craze that developed into folly.

San Francisco's most expensive hotel suite includes a secret passageway rumored to have been used by JFK.

Alleyway plaque commemorating the death of a fictional character in The Maltese Falcon, not far from the author's home.

The remains of a 12th-century chapter house in Golden Gate Park.

Longtime headquarters of controversial boys' club for the world's wealthiest and most powerful.

Adolph Sutro's little-known, geographically inaccurate, deprecated monument.

The miraculous hydrant that saved the Mission District in 1906.

The stones that traveled from Spain to eventually become a holy place for San Francisco's nature worshippers.

A monument to the love people have for their pets.

A historic hotel that made a cameo in Hitchcock's classic film has no intention of letting guests forget its fame.

The oldest burial ground in the city, final resting place of city founders, Ohlone natives and murderers alike.

The one-time watch house for incoming ships at the Golden Gate now stands abandoned and hidden in trees.

A shop full of natural curiosities, carnivorous plants, and costumed taxidermied mice.

Staircase winds down the side of Telegraph Hill through gardens, wild parrots flying overhead.

Relics of the 1894 Midwinter Exposition continue to delight visitors today.

Get lost in this haunting fairytale art walk through a man-made eucalyptus grove.

Life in this isolated, hilltop lighthouse was lonely, but it sure was lovely.

Offering commanding views of the California coastline, this restaurant was a hub for the artists and bohemians of Big Sur.

The unbelievably opulent home built for an infamous newspaperman.

Once America’s most beautiful army base, this abandoned military fort on the coast of Monterey Bay has been left to the elements.

This Roman arch marks the location of an ancient gate at one of the Seven Hills of Rome.

At the crypt of St. Mary of Eulogies and the Dead you are left alone to ponder mortality among piles of skulls.

The yawning maw of this pagan visage is said to bite off the hands of liars.

Hundreds of lucky felines haunt the ruins where Caesar was murdered.