This small shrine dedicated to a fish is believed to hold the secrets to this historic market's founding.

A brick building in Kathmandu's Durbar Square is home to Nepal's most prominent living goddess.

This historic square in Nepal is home to temples dating back to the third century.

This is one of the last surviving structures of a once vast palace complex.

This beautifully restored fortification kept the city safe for centuries.

An imposing Omani fortress surrounded by date palm trees.

A sinkhole and now a swimming hole, too, full of dazzling turquoise water.

This spectacular mosque houses the second-largest chandelier in the world.

This bazaar is one of the oldest in the Arabian world.

The shallow, salty inlet was a safe haven for 19th-century pirates.

Four steel monoliths stand in the Qatari desert, in a breathtaking work of large-scale art by Richard Serra.

A creepy, deserted mock Arabian village can be found in the middle of the Qatari desert.

Some of the ancient-looking huts among these strange rock formations aren't ancient at all, but built as part of a movie set.

An abandoned fishing village in pre-oil Qatar.

A 19th century pearling and fishing village abandoned before Qatar's economic boom.

This mix of Islamic art, vintage vehicles, weaponry, architecture, and history is an ode to eclecticism. 

These beautiful historic watchtowers were used for both scanning the desert for enemy invaders and observing the celestial world.

Fourteen sculptures showing the development of a fetus stand outside a hospital for women and children.

The enormous diamond-shaped building packs a trove of academic and literary treasures into one futuristic space.

The building is a gigantic piece of art inspired by the shape of a desert rose.

This 23-foot-tall bear stands amid the hustle and bustle of Hamad International Airport.

A state-of-the-art medical facility dedicated to treating beloved birds of prey.

Qatar's oldest market can trace its origins back more than a century.

This fountain pays homage to Qatar's history of pearling, the primary industry before oil.