At 72 feet below sea level, it's the lowest commercial airport in the world.

A fiery crater has been burning in the Karakum Desert since 1971.

An outstanding piece of retro Sci-Fi architecture built into a sacred mountain.

The world's second-tallest flagpole stands proud despite dropping rank.

Ancient barriers wrap around what was once an important stop along the Silk Road.

Witness traditional silk production in the Uzbek city that's been a hub of sericulture for over a thousand years.

This dark, damp, perilous tunnel is the only passage from north to south Tajikistan.

One of the most ethnically diverse spots on the planet.

Final palace complex of the last of 29 Kokand rulers.

This "tower of death" has acted as an observatory, a religious hub, and an executioner's lair.

Controversially restored in the 1970s, this giant 15th-century mosque is shrouded in legend.

The Avenue of Mausolea is a series of grand palatial tombs.

A bustling bazaar with an elaborate facade in Central Asia’s underrated capital.

An underground world of gorgeous, palatial metro stations designed as a nuclear shelter complex.

Prowl through this sprawling bazaar under a massive Soviet-era dome for delicious eats.

The last stop in southeast Russia.

Thermal springs at the bottom of this lake create beautiful blue circles of clay.

Thanks to a spelling mistake this bizarre beaver-tiger hybrid became the symbol of a Siberian town.

Unusual, mushroom-like rock formations caused by weathering and water erosion, set to disappear, according to geologists.

This cuddly rodent has a place of honor at a Russian institute for genetic research.

A monument to the defenders of the Arctic in Murmansk, Russia.

A scale model of Russia so big visitors are offered binoculars to rent so they can see the whole thing.

Palace where the nearly un-killable Rasputin was murdered.

Perhaps the tiniest sculpture in Saint Petersburg is a little bronze finch inspired by a song.