A taste of Middle Earth, in the middle of the Bayou City.

An abandoned quicksilver mining town surrounded by the Big Bend parks.

A Prada store in the West Texas desert that is never open for business.

This elegant arc of a waterfall marks a religious turning point.

This tumultuous Icelandic lava field looks so alien European researchers want to use it as a stand-in for Mars.

The most powerful waterfall in all of Europe.

A giant concrete orb in far north Iceland marks the ever-shifting boundary.

The Arctic Circle runs through this isolated spot north of Iceland.

If a glacial river suddenly diving into a sheer chasm via a dramatic, multi-stage waterfall isn't peak Iceland, it's certainly close.

This stunning concert hall has become a symbol of Iceland's national recovery.

Iceland's tribute to its thankless civil servants.

Strange rock formations tower above the river that snakes through this enchanting Icelandic canyon.

Cairns built to bring travelers good luck stretch across the land like miniature stone mountains.

This North Carolina store preserves a historic moment in America's movement for racial equality.

One of the few surviving original NASCAR dirt-track speedways.

The scene of the largest surrender of Confederate troops at the end of the American Civil War.

This too-low North Carolina railroad trestle is still a notorious big rig executioner.

An abandoned whaling station on an active volcano offers hot springs in Antarctica, surrounded by ruined giants of industry.

Rows of stone statues are dressed up to mourn children that are lost before birth.

This little replica of Lady Liberty provides a bit of NYC in a Japanese city.

Starship-temple contains 400 tons of drinking water and offers free Japanese lessons.

A 20-meter (65-foot) robot towers over Tokyo Bay.

The largest bell in the world has been swinging high above a Cologne cathedral for almost a century.

The stones of this formerly witch-obsessed castle were used to build a church.