Places Sandi Hemmerlein Wants to Go

Housed in a century-old building, this museum's dedicated not just to soft drinks, but to the free enterprise system.

Some of the best pastries in "the Czech heritage capital of Texas" come from a gas station off I-35.

Ride on a fully-restored Nike nuclear-tipped missile elevator from the Cold War.

Early prototype for Frank Lloyd Wright's Guggenheim.

The historic building's ornate stained glass fixture has survived the devastating 1906 earthquake, ensuing fires, and multiple redevelopment attempts.

Visit a remnant California's Gold Rush, which locals claim is haunted by spirits from the past.

This colossal underground passage paved the way for large-scale drainage and access tunnels across the U.S., but it almost wasn’t built.

Under the right conditions, rocks will move across this dry lakebed, leaving trails behind them.

This 47-foot chile pepper sculpture welcomes Scoville heat unit obsessed tourists to the Big Chile Inn.

An abandoned incline railway site is now a green space with six acres of trails connecting hilltop neighborhoods.

A museum dedicated to the history of electric interurban transit near the home of the first electric trolley system in the United States.

A particularly creepy abandoned hospital that sparks interest for lovers of the supernatural.

This once bustling boomtown hotel is now the hottest spot in Nevada for ghost hunters.

One of the oldest continuously operating amusement parks in the U.S. is an open-air museum of Art Deco and neon lights.

A ceramic-tiled room at the Seelbach Hotel said to have secret tunnels used by Al Capone and a crowd that helped inspire F. Scott Fitzgerald's 'The Great Gatsby.'

This opulent Pueblo Deco movie palace melds Art Deco and Native American motifs.

The official atomic museum of the United States explores the explosive and productive history of a much maligned energy source.

This unique art installation used boiler tubes from a decommissioned power plant to resemble Antelope Canyon.

At the western edge of Palm Springs, a rugged desert canyon trail leads to a waterfall at the base of the San Jacinto Mountains.

Hidden away among the quiet streets of Beverly Hills, this small park is a haven for walkers and wildlife.

Over 100 lasers, including huge ones that look straight off a sci-fi set.

An art installation commemorates journalist Nellie Bly's undercover reporting inside a New York asylum.

One of the largest wildlife refuges in the contiguous 48 states, it was instrumental in preserving the pronghorn antelope from extinction.

Artist Jack Pierson made this surreal sculpture in honor of Wonder Valley, a countercultural community on edge of civilization.