The very first subway station in New York City is beautiful, decked out in chandeliers, and ... abandoned?

A lovers' beach, tucked below the surface of the island, provides a safe haven for romance.

A book collector's dream, this Toronto bookstore has the world's first "Biblio-Mat," a random book vending machine.

The most alien-looking place on Earth.

An abandoned desert hamlet swallowed up by sand.

In this historic region, homes and churches are carved into ancient volcanic rock formations.

Mysterious lost empire of the Silk Road.

An unfinished tomb carved into a giant boulder in the Arabian Desert.

A creepy, deserted mock Arabian village can be found in the middle of the Qatari desert.

The Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered in the ruins of this ancient monastic community.

A sinkhole and now a swimming hole, too, full of dazzling turquoise water.

Beirut's thinnest building was the result of feuding brothers.

Lived-in building, bedecked with an astonishing array of mirror mosaics.

An ancient capital city that dates back 3,000 years and harbors many surprises.

You can row a boat through this ancient underground reservoir.

Celebrated as a center of civilization, the remains of the ancient city have been nearly destroyed by greed, egoism, and war.

Mirrors and glass shards cover every inch of this arrestingly beautiful mosque.

This centuries-old tree tells an unusual tale of vegetation and fertility in the desert.

Hidden beneath the famous St. Peter's Basilica is a veritable city of the dead that may hold the remains of St. Peter himself.

This ornate Victorian marketplace was the setting for Diagon Alley and the Leaky Cauldron in the first ‘Harry Potter’ film.

The ghost town left by the worst nuclear disaster of all time is being taken over by nature and urban explorers.

The bizarre visions of H.R. Giger, tucked away in a Swiss medieval city.

Stockholm's decidedly unique public transit system has doubled as the world's longest art gallery for decades.

One of Antoni Gaudí's most classic buildings is well-known for its "dragon-back" design.