Places rigor Wants to Go

"Unity, Creativity, Beauty."

This ancient theater, restored in the 20th century, lives on as a venue for dramatic and musical performances.

A gigantic statue of a Russian soldier watches over the ancient city of Plovdiv, a prominent reminder of the Soviet period in Bulgaria.

This historic black and white monastery is one of Bulgaria's architectural jewels.

This tiny Bulgarian town offers a stunning location in the mountains and a storied history.

A spectacular Bulgarian cave resembling a devil's head with a waterfall rushing down its throat.

An architectural marvel that spans the Arda River, and has stories of a haunted past.

An abandoned saucer-shaped monument in the Bulgarian mountains.

The site of many battles and tragedies, including the 40 maidens who leapt into the sea.

An homage to the medieval rulers of Bulgaria.

This massive concrete sculpture is said to be the heaviest communist monument on Earth.

World's tallest cigar-shaped radio tower.

The remains of an entire Roman city can be explored in this interactive museum.

Hungarian self-built castle.

One of the largest barracks of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy's military is now an abandoned ruin.

"Medieval" castle built in the mid-20th century by one family.

The massive white mound and accompanying water terraces are a striking geological oddity.

An industrial site turned into Hungary's most cherished natural wonder.

Climb around the high waterfalls on series of iron ladders and bridges within the wildest gorge in the Slovak Paradise.

The 700-year-old fortress was the site of Count Orlok's castle in "Nosferatu."

This Hungarian stilt village is built in a lake that never freezes over due to the power plant that that uses it as a cooling pond.

The blood-soaked ruins of the castle where the murderous Blood Countess was walled in alive.

The ceiling of Prohodna Cave in northern Bulgaria affords a peek at the sky via two deity-sized-eye-shaped holes.

Bizarrely shaped rock formations in northwest Bulgaria come with equally bizarre legends.