Places Sputnicktatorship Wants to Go

South Korea's largely symbolic, barely used gateway to the North.

Japan and South Korea both lay claim to islands inhabited by one woman.

Seoul amusement park boasts a Korean-speaking pachyderm.

Numerical symbolism abound at East Asia's oldest observatory.

120 mortarless pagodas built by one Korean hermit.

The darkest building on Earth was built for the snow-white scenery of the 2018 Winter Olympics.

The 400-year-old remains of the samurai invasion of Korea.

A Korean village where times stands still.

Asia's largest limestone cave is home to a world of plastic goblins and gold mining history.

Over 80,000 carved wood blocks make up one of the world's oldest intact Buddhist canons.

To enter the lower hall of this temple, you must first walk through a dragon.

One man and his wife have turned a barren Korean island into a fantastical botanical wonderland.

Secret North Korean passage discovered below the world's most dangerous border.

An old-fashioned school with interesting grounds and deep history, including the original Mito Castle gate.

Remnants of an old bank adorn this station's brick wall.

The largest archaeological site from the Yayoi period.

Nope, not the one in France. The only officially-recognized reproduction of Monet’s garden in Giverny is located in a remote corner of Japan.

This massive, Edo Period, coin-shaped sand painting is believed to be a source of great luck.

For centuries, this gold mine was the powerhouse behind the Tokugawa Shogunate.

Designed by a computer, this intricate network of fluorescent green pipes has taken over a subway station.

This volcanic island in the Pacific just keeps growing and growing.

The site of Japan’s first archaeological excavation is also the birthplace of fingerprint forensics.

This frescoed ancient burial mound is a colorful window into China’s influence in early Japan.

This beautiful defunct water tower adds a European flair to a traditional Japanese neighborhood.