butterflywings's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Hokkaidō, Japan

Blue Pond

This mesmerizingly colorful pond looks like a scene straight out of a fairytale.
Kushiro, Japan

Lake Akan Ainu Kotan

This village is home to the largest existing settlement of the Ainu, the Indigenous people of Japan.
Takayama, Japan

Forest of Seven Lucky Gods

The divine septet of Japanese fortune gods are rendered in 1,000-year-old wood at this peaceful site.
Shirakawa-mura, Japan

Shirakawa-go

This isolated Japanese mountain village untouched by time showcases unique and stunning traditional architecture.
Noto, Japan

Mawaki Site

The site of a prehistoric settlement spanning millennia, complete with a reconstructed timber circle.
Takaoka, Japan

Takaoka Daibutsu: The Great Buddha of Takaoka

This giant bronze Buddha, the third largest in Japan, is the last in an ill-fated series of statues.
Toyama, Japan

Fureai Sekibutsu no Sato (Village of Statues)

This abandoned park is home to hundreds of stone statues ranging from humans to mystical beings.
Tateyama-machi, Japan

Snow Canyon

A massive wintry wall of snow up to 66 feet tall flanks a highway through Japan's mountains.
Tokyo, Japan

Japanese Sword Museum

This museum showcases the art of ancient sword-making.
Tokyo, Japan

Irugi Shrine

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

Omoide Yokocho

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.”
Tokyo, Japan

Deathmatch in Hell

Walls of VHS tapes adorn this Golden Gai B horror movie themed bar.
Tokyo, Japan

Alice on Wednesday

Go through the looking glass in Tokyo's Wonderland-themed shop.
Tokyo, Japan

'Magokoro Tennyo' ('Goddess of Sincerity')

Weighing nearly 7 tons, this massive sculpture was carved out of 500-year-old wood and decorated with thousands of jewels.
Tokyo, Japan

The Giant Ghibli Clock

Tokyo’s only Vaudeville-cuckoo clock–steampunk-Victorian curio cabinet time piece.
Ziyang, China

Jiuzhaigou Valley

Snow-capped peaks, colorful waterfalls and stunning vistas on the edge of the Himalayas.
Xining Shi, China

The Great Thangka

Stretching almost 2,000 feet, this painting is one of the longest pieces of Buddhist artwork in the world.
Tulufan Shi, China

Tuyoq

Natives of this mud-brick desert village use an ancient irrigation system to grow sweet, seedless grapes.
Bon Aqua, Tennessee

Johnny Cash’s “One Piece at a Time” Cadillac

A fictional Coupe DeVille built by hand and gifted to the Man in Black himself.
Baltimore, Maryland

Site of Edgar Allan Poe's Death

The site where Poe "in great distress, and ... in need of immediate assistance" likely died.
Baltimore, Maryland

Edgar Allan Poe's Grave

The trials and tribulations of marking Poe's grave.
Baltimore, Maryland

Bazaar

Crammed into a Baltimore row house is an oddities shop that sells everything from skulls to dead insects.
Baltimore, Maryland

Witch Board Museum Baltimore

This small museum celebrates the history of the Ouija board and its connection to the city of Baltimore.
Roanoke, Virginia

Roanoke Star

Forget Hollywood, one of the biggest stars in the world can be found in Roanoke, Virginia.