Beneath the southern end of the Golden Gate Bridge is the “Gibraltar of the West Coast,” a fort built to protect the San Francisco Bay from naval attack.

Below the altar in Saint-Willibrord Basilica rests the mortal remains of Luxembourg's patron saint.

The second-largest giant sequoia in the world.

César Baldaccini's iconic sculpture of a 40-foot thumb stands tall in La Défense.

One of the oldest family businesses in Reykjavík serves lamb-based hot dogs.

Internet rumors, often involving Icelandic singer Björk, have abounded regarding this isolated outcrop of rock.

A melancholy jester sits on the grave of a famous 20th-century ballet dancer and choreographer.

The ruins of a sixth-century monastery sit on the banks of the River Shannon.

The monastery survived the Communist revolution in Mongolia as a religious museum.

For more than two centuries, this family-run establishment has been serving up some of Ireland's best oysters.

This centerpiece of the Hollywood & Highland shopping center is a recreation of a long-lost movie set.

This church also serves as a lighthouse complete with a beacon.

During the Soviet era, the spire of this longstanding church was used as a radio transmission tower.

The post-apocalyptic remnants of a bucolic town ruined by a plane crash.

A monument to the more than one million enslaved Africans deported from the port of Ouidah.

Dozens of snakes are housed and worshipped within the walls of this Vodun temple.

Africa's Venice on stilts.

The unique building practices of the Batammariba reflect the community's deep reverence for and connection to the earth.

Walk along the medieval fortifications that have been protecting Tallinn since the 14th century.

These enormous, stern-faced statues greet visitors with lanterns, and sometimes costumes.

This museum explores how a 1973 volcanic eruption forever changed this small Icelandic island.

Designed to mark the geographical center of France.

In 1927, a biplane disappeared while attempting to complete the first non-stop transatlantic flight between Paris and New York City. This memorial stands at the last place it was seen.

The industrial architecture honors the laborers who brought the Exposition Universelle of 1900 to life.