The Time Variance Authority's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Mecca, California

Salton Sea

The ghostly remains of an accidental sea.
Yavapai County, Arizona

Montezuma Castle

Ninety feet off the valley floor is an ancient dwelling put under protection of the U.S. government by Teddy Roosevelt.
San Simeon, California

Piedras Blancas Elephant Seal Rookery

This stretch of beach along California's central coast is a busy highway for the largest seal in the northern hemisphere.
Goleta, California

Goleta Monarch Butterfly Grove

A popular winter vacation destination for migrating monarch butterflies.
Beijing, China

Chairman Mao Memorial Hall

The embalmed remains of the communist leader lie within a custom crystal coffin.
Los Angeles, California

The Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel

Hollywood's oldest hotel is the site of the first Academy Awards, the birthplace of Marilyn Monroe's career, and the home of Montgomery Clift's ghost.
Los Angeles, California

Urban Light

Scores of vintage street lamps shine along L.A.’s Miracle Mile.
Los Angeles, California

Autry National Center

Wild West history in Hollywood style.
Los Angeles, California

Hollywood Bowl Museum

This museum is a music lover's introduction to the iconic venue.
Malmö, Sweden

Malmo Möllestenen (The Malmo Millstone)

This millstone commemorates a gruesome tale that may have been the source of the city's name.
Laboe, Germany

Laboe Naval Memorial

This monument to those fallen in the World Wars is accompanied by a U-boat that Germany bought for a Deutsche Mark.
Zagreb, Croatia

Zagreb's Museum of Broken Relationships

Where the lovelorn find a home for their sentimental keepsakes.
San Marino, San Marino

Montale

The smaller of the three towers of San Marino is a former prison inaccessible from the ground level.
Shanghai, China

Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum

A wall within the institution displays the names of 13,000 Jews who took refuge in the city during World War II.
Shanghai, China

Shanghai Propaganda Poster Art Centre

An collection of Chinese propaganda posters from 1949 to 1979.
Shanghai, China

Oriental Pearl Tower

The once highest point in China blends symbolic design with a kick of adrenaline.
Shanghai, China

Shanghai French Concession

An out-of-place slice of France, smack in the middle of Shanghai.
Xian Shi, China

Xi'an City Walls

An ancient fortification lives on in this Chinese city.
Simi Valley, California

Grandma Prisbrey's Bottle Village

An eccentric folk art landmark made out of discarded bottles by an inspired "grandma."
Agoura Hills, California

M*A*S*H Filming Location

The show's fictional Korean medical camp was created in the Santa Monica hills.
Mexico City, Mexico

La Casa Azul

Frida Kahlo's childhood home, now a museum of her life and works.
Mexico City, Mexico

Museo Casa de León Trotsky

A museum in the former home of Marxist revolutionary Leon Trotsky.
Mexico City, Mexico

Coatlicue Statue

Come face to face with the ferocious visage of the serpent-headed mother goddess of the Aztecs.
Ajijic, Mexico

'El Muro de los Muertos' ('The Wall of the Dead')

The corner walls of a primary school showcase a Mexican version of memento mori.