Places Sputnicktatorship Wants to Go

Japan's longest-running music festival takes place on an isolated butterfly-shaped island.

Approximately 300 million years ago, a massive coral reef existed in what is now the largest limestone cave in Japan.

This futuristic public park includes large sculptures and an artificial geyser.

Narrow passes cut out of mountains surround the medieval capital of Japan.

Curious onlookers have suspected this strange structure is a secret government base.

One of Kyoto's oldest food establishments has supplied soba noodles to temple priests and the Imperial Palace.

This mysterious medieval grotto holds a grid of sacred wells of unknown purpose.

The world's largest radiation field is probably our best bet for irradiated vegetable superheroes.

Museum dedicated to the largest battleship ever built.

Japan's hottest hot spring has a memorable name.

A flight of this "ghost staircase" has 40 steps on the way up, but only 39 steps on the way down.

Nestled in an unassuming residential area, this "forbidden forest" is rumored to spirit away those who dare enter it.

One of the bloodiest and most important battles in Japanese history is recreated with kitschy concrete statues.

Constructed thousands of years ago, these stone circles offer incredible insight into the lives of the people who built them.

An ingenious solution to a tricky engineering problem, this spiraling bridge takes drivers for a dizzying spin.

Turn around and stick your head between your legs for the best view of this tree-covered sandbar.

This little known mountain has claimed four times as many lives as Everest.

Ruins and statues dot the landscape of this tiny island rich with royal history.

"Singing sands" and the world's largest hourglass reside near Japan's Kotogahama beach.

This traditional Japanese-style house doubles as one of James Turrell's colorful works of art.

A Japanese train station built around a 700-year-old camphor tree.

A mysterious set of tunnels carved in the hills of rural northern Kyushu.

This historic hydroelectric power plant in Japan has been preserved and is open to the public.

This ordinary set of steps is a must-see destination for fans of a certain romantic anime.