This foreboding building was the headquarters of the terrifying Spanish Inquisition in Mexico.

An airy Art Deco space devoted to the weird and wonderful folk art traditions of Mexico.

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

The only castle in North America to ever house European sovereigns.

Gilded heaven for philatelists and architecture freaks, still in full working order despite sitting atop tremulous ground.

The world's only international cryptozoology museum is host to an unrivaled collection of mysterious objects.

An eerie smiling woman looms above the granite tombstones.

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

One of the last remnants of the city's Chinese nightclub scene is now a dive bar selling killer mai tais.

With the touch of a button, you can read a randomly selected short story.

The only theatre in the world constructed specifically for sound movement.

With statues of Nelson Mandela and Harvey Milk this monument has been called the Mount Rushmore of California.

Neoclassical Revival mansion and set of horror cult classic Phantasm.

This Oakland fairytale kingdom, fiercely devoted to childlike whimsy, was an early inspiration for Disneyland.

Dive bar built out of the remains of a whaling ship.

Bonsai garden in Oakland is curated by the first non-Japanese female bonsai master in the United States.

Julia Morgan's Moorish-Gothic labyrinth of fountains, trees, natural light and Oakland's notable dead.

A huge musical instrument played by the ocean.

Collective dedicated to restoring steam engines.

A kaleidoscopic warehouse-maze of handmade neon signs.

The ruins of a medieval seminary some say is the oldest university site in Scotland.

The mysterious megaliths have enchanted and intrigued visitors for thousands of years.

A whale's jawbone and a malfunctioning harpoon welcome you to the village of Bragar and its lore.

Spend the night in this formerly abandoned traditional Scottish village.