Places Sputnicktatorship Wants to Go

An ancient church on a tiny island covered in stone bible stories has controversially been turned into a museum.

A Turkish monastery tucked into a cliff wall.

Five sultans and their families rest in eternal splendor, teeming with overlooked beauty and drama.

Roman ruins, natural methane fires and a lovely beach.

This famous city eluded concrete detection until the early 2000's.

Roman ruins top white travertine terraces formed by ancient hot springs.

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

These strange piles of magnetized volcanic ash travel across the desert about 50 feet per year.

This sacred, circular cave is lined with pools so clear and still that it's hard to tell where the water begins.

Human ancestor’s 3.6 million year-old footprints.

This rare volcano spews the strangest and (literally) coolest lava in the world.

Stay in your own little bubble.

A salty red wasteland in Tanzania is a breeding spot for endangered flamingos.

This fortress sits atop a centuries-old well system.

This giant volcanic crater holds its very own field of salt.

More than 100 monumental tombs carved into rock are preserved at this ancient Nabataean site in the Arabian Desert.

Drink and dine in a coral cave that's at least 120,000 years old.

The world’s largest permanent desert lake is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Strange sandstone canyon known as the "place broken by itself."

The skeletal remains of the famous hominid "Lucy" were found at this spot.

An ocean in the making, in the Ethiopian desert.

Massive stele returned to Ethiopia after 70 years in Rome.

An otherworldly restaurant perched on the edge of a jagged cliff next to a medieval holy city.

Ethiopia's "smoking mountain" is in one of the hottest regions on the planet and is home to two lava lakes.