Places Elisa Wants to Go

After the oysters have been shucked, and the restaurant's been shuttered, the terrazzo sidewalk from the 1940s is all that remains.

In a city famous for its cemeteries, it's no wonder these are easy to overlook—they clock in at just a few inches tall.

An artist weaves "wooden quilts" with scraps salvaged from his Katrina-damaged home in Tremé.

Made of giant chains and hung with shackles, this iron cross honors those unknowns who perished under American slavery.

This historic "City of the Dead" lies prominently in the center of New Orleans' famous Garden District.

Rare recess caves fill this unbelievably beautiful Ohio park.

Outside Hope College in Holland, Michigan, a marker honors a University without people from the fictional Kcymaerxthaereal times.

For over 100 years, this Indiana town has had a tree growing out the top of the local courthouse.

Once adorning a New York skyscraper, these reclaimed ruins now haunt an Indiana park.

Cleveland's giant "free" stamp is a nod to the Civil War, but was misinterpreted for years.

This labyrinthine resting place of Black American leaders has been reclaimed by nature.

One of the largest trees of its kind in California.

One of the few remaining carousels built by master amusement park carver Charles I.D. Looff.

The classic Atari game's iconic aliens have invaded downtown San Diego.

A retired firefighter created this contraption so he and his family wouldn't die if accidentally buried alive.

This stone memorial pays tribute to a massive shipwreck which was sadly overshadowed by the death of John Wilkes Booth.

These early tent-shaped grave coverings are unique to Appalachia.

The grave of America's 11th president is not in some grand monument but instead it's hidden away on the grounds of the Tennessee Capital.

Mass graves and Victorian monuments mark the history of Memphis in this 19th century cemetery.

The original vault that held the president's remains still stands, empty, not far from where he was finally buried.

A brass plaque dedicated to a convicted cannibal hangs in the National Press Club, and that's not even the craziest part of the story.

There's a 12-foot-tall replica of the Washington Monument hidden under a manhole nearby.

The seawater playground of gilded-era San Francisco burned to the ground in 1966.

The tombstone of the founder of the lost town of Ogletown is now stuck inside a traffic median.