Places katya g Wants to Go

The verdant mossy ruins of a Franciscan monastery lie in the remote Sintra hills awaiting exploration.

In Portugal, a secluded stretch of untouched natural beauty hides at the bottom of a steep hill.

A fortress off the West coast of Portugal that dates back to 1502.

Explore a remarkable 35-hectare sculpture garden located an hour outside of Lisbon.

The crumbling ruins of an abandoned 12th-century monastery.

These 400-year-old ruins are all that's left of the monastery where Ines de Castro was assassinated by the King of Portugal.

One of the oldest universities in the world exhibits thousands of specimens from its 700-year-old collection.

A small Portuguese cottage formed between boulders in the countryside.

A collection of unique, and sometimes terrifying, handmade masks and costumes used for local festivals.

One of the world’s longest pedestrian suspension bridges.

The medieval town's star-shaped walls are geometrically dazzling, though not entirely impenetrable.

An 11th-century medieval castle cascades over the town of Numão.

This Gallo-Roman sanctuary is dedicated to Serápis, god of the underworld.

A majestic hotel for dreamers rises from the center of a fairytale wood.

Every day is like Christmas on this street where the traditional Neapolitan nativity scene comes to life.

An unusual "skull with ears" sits in the crypt of this small church tucked away at the end of a narrow alley.

The Neapolitan Cult of the Dead still cares for the skulls at this mini-Fontanelle.

An eerie, little-known Neapolitan museum filled with preserved human remains.

A surreal botanical garden with an even more surreal tour guide.

A rococo room covered entirely in porcelain originally constructed for another royal residence.

An underground paleo-Christian burial site composed of the remains of several cemeteries and Basilicas.

The burial place of an obscure North African saint was turned into a macabre body preservation factory for the 17th-century Neapolitan elite.

A priceless collection of the Nation's cryptologic history.

A haunting exhibit in a wildlife refuge center highlights threatened species and the conservation efforts needed to save them.