This little valley along Highway 1 is engulfed by thousands of lilies during the spring season.

Hopeless romantics will swoon over the sweet story behind this bright and colorful home.

This abandoned boat was left in place thanks to its rotting beauty.

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

One of the oldest producers of hand-folded fortune cookies still uses its original secret recipe.

The lighthouse central to the 1980s horror classic "The Fog" is, in fact, located in one of the foggiest areas of the Pacific Coast.

This opulent hotel has been visited by Spider-Man, Charlie's Angels, and the Ghostbusters.

The fossilized remains of ancient California redwoods.

This Big Sur waterfall drops 80 feet directly into the Pacific Ocean, and inspired the hillside house up top.

Hollywood's most famous landmark, the "temporary" sign that has stood for decades longer than intended.

In all of the 29 years it was in operation, no prisoners ever escaped successfully... or so they claim.

This amazing medieval fortress stands atop a promontory along the famous Cinque Terre.

The remains of this 2nd-century Roman temple are incorporated into a modern building.

An ancient Roman temple first dedicated to an emperor's wife is now a church.

Before it was buried by volcanic ash, this fast-food restaurant fed the hungry hordes of ancient Rome.

In the past, Renaissance sex workers were encouraged to entice customers on this bridge.

Stare out over the lagoon and beyond from this 10th-century campanile on the island where the city of Venice began.

The ruins of the largest gladiatorial school in Rome are largely hidden under modern streets.

In the early Roman Empire, people deemed traitors and criminals were tossed to their deaths from this rock.

Two stone columns flank the grand Venice square, but there were supposed to be three.

This amazingly well-preserved villa just outside Pompeii boasts rare examples of ancient Roman paintings.

A slightly creepy gallery of plaster cast models in the same museum as Michelangelo's David.

These medieval skyscrapers dominate the skyline of this small Tuscan town.

Those who own or stay at this 500-year-old, allegedly cursed house often meet terrible fates.