Places rigor Wants to Go

Installed in an act of one-upsmanship, the annual sundial in this church is also a symbolic victory for the Gregorian calendar.

A huge enchanting public park just outside the ancient walls of Rome.

Breathtaking and huge 430 year old maps of Italy.

This beautiful park on the outskirts of Rome protects the ruins of two colossal ancient aqueducts.

A fairy tale castle in modern Rome.

Architectureal fantasy quarter of Rome.

A modern sliver of architecture in Roma.

Ruins of a 10th century church tucked away deep in a botanical garden.

This breathtaking monastery was established by Saint Benedict himself 1,500 years ago.

A medieval Italian village is fighting depopulation with this vibrant annual street art festival.

The second-highest village in Lazio has attracted artists for 400 years and is now a spectacular open-air art gallery.

Medieval town turned hippie commune, once home to the secret foreskin of Jesus Christ.

Ever loyal to Roma, the small village of Albe in the Abruzzo region carried on until an earthquake did it in.

What looks like a link in Gondor's early warning system is actually a centuries-old Italian fortress.

This quaint Italian town keeps losing ground as the sides of its plateau slowly erode.

Geothermal waterfalls in Tuscany.

Water and windows define this defensive Italian well.

This picturesque Umbrian city has a subterranean side that has long remained hidden.

Romans built the world's tallest artificial waterfall in 271 BC.

A 2,000-year-old engineering wonder hides beneath an Italian town.

This 16th-century monastery has been turned into a surrealist architecture compound.

Nestled in the hills of Tuscany are gorgeous, multicolored hot springs.

The world's largest "Christmas tree" is illuminated by hundreds of lights stretching 2,000 feet up the slope of Mount Ingino.

This domed temple was built in a hidden cave mouth as a refuge for sinners seeking absolution.