Places helenmendes Wants to Go

Saintly bones pressed into a wax effigy of a Catholic superstar.

A scandalous Art Nouveau collaboration that set Paris all atwitter at the turn of the 20th century.

A psychedelic labyrinth on the San Francisco bay.

A pedestrian island in the middle of world-famous Times Square emits a strange (and purposeful) humming noise.

A terrific purveyor of natural history objects and curios.

The giant pair of sexy legs sticking out the window of this costume store have become its main draw.

Over 315,000 preserved amphibians and reptiles in jars.

A famous alternative culture epicenter and where Joplin serenaded young hippies.

San Francisco's urban bison herd has persisted in the face of extinction, development, and disease.

A 300-ship graveyard, with a few still visible at low tide.

A historic hotel that made a cameo in Hitchcock's classic film has no intention of letting guests forget its fame.

An essential stop before plundering, BYO Cutlass.

A shop full of natural curiosities, carnivorous plants, and costumed taxidermied mice.

There is no trying to fall in love with this Star Wars fountain, you just do or do not.

A collection of 20th-century automata, penny arcade games, and musical contraptions.

San Francisco's newly reopened hands-on science museum.

A walk-in working camera obscura produces 360-degree live images of the San Francisco coast.

A 140-year-old castle with underground caves hidden in San Francisco.

This shop specializes in oddities and Victorian-inspired wonders.

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.

A huge musical instrument played by the ocean.