Steampunk, humanoid sculptures crawl on all fours in a Tokyo plaza.

A 17th-century Shinto shrine that is home to statues of Mickey Mouse and Pikachu.

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

Stuck in a bygone era, the oldest subterranean shopping street in Japan hides beneath the popular Asakusa district of Tokyo.

A King Kong-like gorilla hangs from the top of this commercial building in Tokyo.

After a profound show of devotion for his master, a dog becomes the symbol of loyalty for an entire nation.

Once a black market electronics marketplace, now an otaku shopper's paradise.

The legendary birthplace of the Japanese maneki-neko is dotted with hundreds of lucky beckoning cats.

Colloquially known as “piss alley,” this narrow street filled with tiny bars and barbecue stands looks like it was pulled straight out of “Blade Runner.”

If Hello Kitty were Mickey Mouse, this would be Disneyland.

A French-Colonial era collection of taxidermy and wet specimens, secreted away in the National University of Hanoi.

Home of the unusual art of water puppetry, one of Vietnam's oldest curiosities.

Monument to a brutal, ineffectual US bombing campaign and a sobering reminder of the human cost of the Vietnam War.

A slightly creepy gallery of plaster cast models in the same museum as Michelangelo's David.

A medieval weapon rumored to have been used by the brilliant poet himself.

The mummified relic of St. Antoninus.

This ancient Irish religious site is covered in ancient carvings, many of which have barely aged.

The oldest inn in Kilkenny was established by the first convicted witch in Ireland.

A moody and picturesque riverside ruin overgrown with vegetation.

An Iron Age fort on the edge of a seaside cliff offers a glimpse into an ancient, mystical world.

A tiny microvalley etched into the side of Knocknarea Mountain hides another world.

This Irish show cave is said to have been the site of a Viking massacre that claimed 1,000 lives.

An Irish church where an 800-year-old mummy is reaching out of his coffin as if to shake hands.

The gorgeous library at Trinity College is home to remarkable treasures of Irish identity.