Places curiouser 54cc2706 Wants to Go

A few iconic structures are all that remain of America’s first outdoor shopping mall.

This conservation area is also home to many of the region's desert tortoises.

Cows on a ranch are commonplace, scattered cow bones everywhere? Not so much.

Southern California’s Theme Park Beginnings.

A living museum dedicated to the legendary woodworker and his soulful furniture.

A water tower shaped like a giant coffee pot looms over a small Swedish village in Central California.

Depicting scenes of everyday life - and specific individuals - in Great Depression era San Francisco.

This mysterious series of teeny guerrilla installations sheds a whimsical light on street art in Oakland.

An abandoned boat that's been stranded mysteriously for decades.

Every Sunday, this Thai temple in Berkeley serves a backyard brunch.

This ultra-modern California span is actually a titanic solar clock in disguise built by famed architect Santiago Calatrava.

A small, peaceful sculpture garden with a grim memorial to a disaster that took place a few blocks away.

A remote desert lookout offers unparalleled views of the California badlands for those who brave the trek.

An unexpected and peaceful oasis on a hillside.

Once the largest winery in the world, this castle-like building now sits abandoned on the San Pablo/San Francisco Bay shore.

A New England-style lighthouse along California's beautiful Highway 1 gets a re-do.

Common all over Japan, kōbans are small community police boxes, and now one is guarding one of L.A.’s megamalls.

An off-grid art installation that encourages its visitors to imagine a world without waste.

The sea once considered an ecological wasteland is now called "crown jewel of avian biodiversity" by scientists.

Suburban observatory was personal lab of the father of modern astrophysics.

Housed in a memorial lighthouse, this museum relays the history of surfing, beginning with the antics of royal Hawaiian teenagers.

Known as the "Hobbit Houses," these storybook homes look like they're straight out of the Shire.

A giant desert bird that once swung music fans at Coachella now has a home in a nearby traffic circle.

More than 700 species live within this murky marvel of a swamp on California's coast.