Places rivkaarose Wants to Go

An intricately carved Viking church overlooks a glistening fjord.

These ominous lava formations were said to be an entrance to the netherworld so of course they inspired a famous metal band.

An illuminated manuscript comprising the life's work of a lone monk, inexplicably decorated with a portrait of Satan himself.

Construction of Barcelona’s iconic (but controversial) church was finally completed in 2026—a century after the death of its architect.

A popular shrine where the Blessed Virgin allegedly appeared in 1830, displaying a holy armchair and two incorruptible remains of Lady Saints.

A 16th-century fountain marks the site of a lost medieval cemetery once filled with mass graves.

This Paris art space celebrates the creativity and ingenuity that springs from abject poverty, especially in Africa.

A lone cannonball remains lodged in the walls of the Hotel de Sens as a sober reminder of a revolution.

The recovered bones of martyrs slaughtered during The Terror are on display in this church crypt.

Natural history museum celebrating biodiversity with a parade of taxidermy animals.

Twelve grave-faced marble angels guard the emperor's tomb at Les Invalides.

Paris' fabled purveyor of exotic taxidermy and natural history curios.

Medieval museum built over Roman baths that features famous tapestries of a lady and a unicorn.

This museum houses an imposing skeleton army comprised of creatures great and small.

A counter-culture bookstore like no other hides in plain sight in the streets of Paris.

A haunting collection of the vanished and disappearing natural world.

This massive library holds what was once the largest book collection in the world.

France's most famous cemetery, with some of its most curious tombs.

The vast, legendary catacombs hold secrets much stranger than stacked bones.

This serene wooded hilltop has a dark history as the climactic point of the Swedish witch trials.

Near the former site of numerous witch burnings, this lavish Edinburgh mainstay pays homage to Scotland's brutal history.

A family accused of witchcraft once called this medieval tower home.

A memorial to 350 people burned at the stake for witchcraft.

Late at night, the bust of the "Dracula" actor was snuck onto the facade of this Budapest castle.