Places tjhoek Wants to Go

The unbelievably opulent home built for an infamous newspaperman.

A hotel and restaurant serving as the mecca of kitsch.

The first life claimed by this record-breaking peak wasn't lost to exposure or a fall, but rather lightning.

The tragedy of the Japanese internment camps is remembered here by a stark "Soul Consoling Tower."

The highest point in Iowa, while not that impressive to mountain states, has earned its own monuments.

The walls of Germany's Parliament still show the scars of the Red Army takeover in World War II.

Hollywood's oldest hotel is the site of the first Academy Awards, the birthplace of Marilyn Monroe's career, and the home of Montgomery Clift's ghost.

Instead of hoofing it up steep stairs, residents can hitch a ride on this private lift.

These two monoliths have stood at the entrance to the neighborhood since the days it was called "Hollywoodland."

A rare surviving example of a pre-WWII Japanese garden, restored after years of neglect.

A repository of Pasadena history.

In one Chicago park, a trio of werewolves are waiting to devour their fallen brethren.

An actual 1957 Cadillac De Ville, encased in 15 cubic yards of concrete.

A landmark for a trailblazer for female architects and the designer of one of the most famous and opulent buildings in California.

The illuminating collection of L.A. street lights is run by the city and only opens one day per month.

Honoring Italian greats from Joe DiMaggio to Rocky Marciano.

A one-armed veteran of the Battle of Waterloo lies in a cemetery for one in the middle of a Chicago scrapyard.

The original Garfield station is the oldest station facility on the "L", with the station house dating from 1892.

Rifle through images of skyscrapers, Worlds Fairs, and more in the largest public postcard repository in America.

One-of-a-kind preserved ruins of an abandoned 1880s church in Chicago's Pilsen neighborhood.

A strange rock in Chicago marks the spot where a tree once stood in honor of the 18th President.

These chunky stone towers out in Lake Michigan are the key to Chicago’s drinking water.

These abandoned grain silos and tunnels are an urban exploration dream.

This cheerfully-named branch of the Chicago River is the fetid result of years of blood, entrails, and meatpacking waste.