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

Once close to extinction, there is no shortage of elephant seals on the beaches of Año Nuevo State Park.

A shape-shifting buy-sell-trade bookstore, born to Beatnik Era spirit.

Since 1973, this block has been home to the most concentrated collection of murals in San Francisco.

Millions of years of oxidation make a drive down this winding Death Valley road surprisingly colorful.

Golden Gate Park's historic collection of plants.

An abandoned Jazz Age dream home and con man's hideout in Death Valley.

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

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

An artsy hidden staircase leads to breathtaking views of San Francisco.

The masses at this church incorporate enough moonshine and animal sacrifice that they are no longer recognizably Catholic.

An elaborate Mayan city shrouded in alien conspiracy revealed the tomb of Pacal the Great.

No telescopes, no power, no gift shop: The Observatory of Chichen Itza, one of the world's oldest observatories, takes astronomy back to basics.

Spanish religion mixed with local architecture has yielded a network of churches unlike any other.

One of Chile's most active volcanoes is riddled with beautiful caves.

What was once a unique system of urban elevators is turning into a mechanical ruin.

A hermit's tiny cell built into the cliffside that saved him in South Pembrokeshire.

Superstitious? Discover the witchy side of Mexico through its largest esoteric market.

Every equinox this Maya pyramid puts on a spooky ancient light show.

An island filled with hundreds of hanging, decomposing, decapitated dolls.

Groups of prehistoric tombs that dot the mountains of northern Oman.

This bazaar is one of the oldest in the Arabian world.

A sinkhole and now a swimming hole, too, full of dazzling turquoise water.

An imposing Omani fortress surrounded by date palm trees.