These mammoth-yet-narrow crevasses in the Earth are perfect for taking an otherworldly swim.

Building this tragically pointless stone barrier cost the lives of the prisoners made to build it.

An exhibition devoted to the life (and posthumous taxidermy form) of the last known representative of the Pinta Island Tortoises.

Home of the "true" equator.

An elaborate shrine dedicated to the four corners of the world unfortunately misses its mark.

This 12-inch-tall wooden sculpture of a winged Virgin Mary has inspired much devotion and countless replicas.

It took 160 years to complete the most ornate church in Ecuador.

This historic street in Quito is known for its seven stone crosses—and one presidential assassination.

Quito's historic, main square dates back to the 16th century.

The outside of this exposed Moche pyramid is covered with striking colorful adobe friezes.

This walk to the Pacific Ocean is surrounded by modern statues of Mochica Gods.

The highest tropical mountain range in the world is in Central Peru, home to a vast array of exotic and quirky plants and animals.

This stone complex marks the urban center of a lost civilization.

A set of ancient drawings in the desert of Peru that are so massive, many of them can only be fully seen from the sky.

In the upscale neighborhood of Miraflores in Lima, a pretty little park is home to dozens of cats.

The large collection of pre-Columbian pottery might make you blush.

Now containing the bones of the actual conquistador, instead of someone else.

The mortal remains of an estimated 70,000 people lie in the basement of a monastery in Lima, Peru.

A monument to the conquistador became increasingly controversial in the very city that he founded.

In a past life this steamboat hauled rubber and passengers up and down the Amazon.

The forgotten tomb of the Peruvian rubber baron who was the inspiration for Werner Herzog's epic film "Fitzcarraldo."

This iron building in the Amazon allegedly shares an architect with the Eiffel Tower.

Visiting dignitaries and Hollywood stars once stayed at this 1920s hotel, alongside ghosts that are said to haunt its corridors.

The mysterious "Candelabra of the Andes" could represent anything from a god's trident to a hallucinogenic plant.