Places Mat Wants to Go

Germany's longest suspension rope bridge.

This medieval castle overlooking the Elzbach river looks just like it did hundreds of years ago.

Every half hour the eye-rolling clock face sticks out its tongue to mock the good citizens of Koblenz.

This fountain of a little boy that spits on passersby at erratic intervals is a town icon.

Tiny castle in the middle of the Rhine made you pay to pass.

The many—66 to be exact—faces of the German forest.

Legendary site where an evil bishop was devoured by rodents.

This German bone house contains the remains of some 20,000 souls.

A historic casino where Dostoyevsky is said to have lost it all on a single spin of the roulette wheel.

The sweet story of how American cargo planes became known as "Candy Bombers" during the Berlin Blockade.

An isolated "phantom bridge" doomed to crumble into ruin.

This mesmerizingly colorful pond looks like a scene straight out of a fairytale.

Abandoned Japanese ghost town gives a glimpse into what our own metropolises may leave behind.

One of the tallest statues in the world, and the tallest statue of a goddess in Japan.

Colloquially known as “piss alley,” this narrow street filled with tiny bars and barbecue stands looks like it was pulled straight out of “Blade Runner.”

65 million-year-old chalk outcroppings mark the end of the Jurassic Coast.

One of the oldest trees in Britain may have been witness to some of the country's formative moments.

This foolish Victorian sea fort was converted to a deluxe hotel.

England's most notorious suicide spot.

Surreal riveted sea forts once protected the Kent shores from German attack.

The oldest dim sum restaurant in the United States is a nostalgic jewel.

Early prototype for Frank Lloyd Wright's Guggenheim.

One of the most photographed buildings in a city known for its Modernista architecture is an abandoned squat.

This home designed for chocolate magnate Antoni Amatller is an exquisite treasure-box of Catalan Modernism.