Places Sputnicktatorship Wants to Go

This picturesque round lake is said to be home to the legendary Mokèlé-mbèmbé.

The "Versailles of the Jungle" built by a dictator is now a decaying shadow of its hubristic grandeur.

Camels and crocodiles share the black waters of this stunning Saharan oasis.

These ancient giraffes are the largest known animal petroglyphs in the world.

The most remote tree in the world survived desertification, but not a drunk truck driver.

The world's most remote memorial to the victims of the UTA Flight 772 disaster.

Classical ruins that remember ancient Rome's presence in Africa.

A century-old stone hermitage overlooks this remote pass in the Hoggar mountains, surrounded by a landscape of eroded volcanic cores.

The original resting place of Queen Cleopatra and Mark Antony's only daughter.

An extraordinary mix of Phoenician, Roman, early Christian, and Byzantine ruins beautifully set overlooking the Mediterranean.

The abstract sandstone rock formations at this Algerian national park are rich with prehistoric art.

This dizzying span over the ancient Algerian city was once the highest suspension bridge in the world.

Rusted structures stand like ghosts of Cyprus' 6,000-year-old copper industry.

The ruins of a fairytale castle with a tumultuous history stand high atop the mountains.

Sex curse discovered on ancient tablet in Cyprus.

A crumbling ghost town with prime views of the dam that doomed it.

Once part of an ancient international harbor, it's now an all-you-can-eat shrimp buffet for flamingos and other water birds.

The water here is so clear you can see the mysteriously sunken ship from the surface.

The ancient mosaics here are considered among the finest in the world, and serve as a stunning record of Greco-Roman daily life.

Breathtaking Byzantine paintings cover the inside of this 12th-century church.

An ancient necropolis of magnificent tombs.

For nearly 2,000 years this church has been waging war on local snakes by importing cats.

This 700-year-old Cyprus castle is the birthplace of the world's oldest wine, said to be toasted by Richard the Lionheart at his wedding.

Early Islamic mosque with several strange conical domes.