Places SamWPiano Wants to Go

It was originally part of a "terrible lizards" collection at the 1964 New York World’s Fair.

The dream home of an iconoclastic renaissance man still stands as a monument to his domestically mundane vision.

These chunky stone towers out in Lake Michigan are the key to Chicago’s drinking water.

A collection of 11 million buttons illustrates the human toll of the Holocaust.

The clothes-washing king doubles as a community center with some unusual features, including an aviary filled with finches.

More than 8,000 drinking jugs say “Cheers!” to a guy named Toby.

Once at the center of U.S. finance, the historic Trading Room was meticulously recreated piece by piece and rebuilt in the Art Institute.

A journey begins with a single step, and for many, the road-trip of a lifetime started at this Chicago intersection.

The murals have transformed a residential alley into a vibrant drive-through gallery.

The carved remains of a 200-year-old oak tree memorialize the namesake of the iconic "Wizard of Oz" character.

This tiny historic jail along Route 66 is the perfect fit for exactly one criminal and their partner-in-crime.

A 400-foot-tall tall map of Chicago makes this once-ignored building stand out.

This lagomorph-obsessed Route 66 emporium is home to a giant jackrabbit that sits in a bunny graveyard.

The famous author's birthplace is preserved in a town that he once described as narrow-minded.

Museum dedicated to the art of cutting and polishing stones.

The hometown of Popeye's creator is littered with a growing collection of granite cartoon characters.

This art gallery and oddities boutique bewitches visitors with a trove of occult trinkets and eccentric antiques, work by an ever-changing roster of underground artists, and classes in tarot and other mystic arts.

This life-size bronze statue remembers the tallest recorded human in his Illinois hometown.

This cemetery is all that remains of a school for "wayward" girls.

While he no longer has an eatery to give him context, this off-brand Paul Bunyan still holds his giant hot dog with pride.

Man-made geyser that rises to the exact height of the Gateway Arch.

A historic and oft-filmed prison stands in a Chicago suburb.

A small Chicago museum filled with thousands of preserved butterflies, beetles, and more.

Spanking machines, fake goats, and more devices of humiliation are on display in this museum of fraternal initiation devices.