Places Edited by Rachel James

A futuristic temple of light uses prisms and rainbows to create an atmosphere of peace.

This mysterious series of teeny guerrilla installations sheds a whimsical light on street art in Oakland.

An idyllic swimming pool tells the tale of Hemingway's trouble with women.

A site where “the ravages of the war are more striking…than any other place in contemporary Spain.”

Gladiators battle and chariots race daily in the ruins of a once-great Roman city.

What once sat in the world’s spotlight is today a largely disused ghost complex.

The mysterious round rocks of Schooner Gulch.

Grandpa Rainbow felt the neighborhood needed some color, so he picked up a paintbrush and went to work.

A palace destined to never house a king.

The Old Mill shown in the opening credits of “Gone With the Wind” is actually fairly new, and was never a mill at all.

Erroneously called the world's tallest flagpole, this landmark is devoted to "good neighborliness."

A bloody history is captured in this former prison turned museum.

The peaceful gravesite of a rugged wild west gunman echoes the touching story of his last days.

One of Savannah's oldest and most haunted cemeteries, featuring graves desecrated by Sherman's Union Army.

The trials and tribulations of marking Poe’s grave.

An isolated beacon with a history of grisly murder and a view of some of literature's greatest inspirations.

This natural Icelandic fissure allows divers to swim right between two volatile tectonic plates.

Erotic art covers the walls of the largest ancient pleasure palace.

Beasts and branches swirl in sandstone carvings, interrupted by one strange creature.

Ecuador's largest Incan ruins show evidence of sophisticated irrigation and diplomacy among the ancient builders.

Amidst the bustling streets of Dublin, there is a hushed garden that is dedicated to "All those who gave their lives in the cause of Irish Freedom."

A working miniature city designed to teach kids about safety and presumably city planning.

A monument to the egos of two railroad magnates that fell into decline along with their careers.

A once great mansion stands in stately ruin.