A basement full of treasures lies beneath this inn that has worn many hats throughout its 140+ years.

A stranded woman lived alone on this remote island for 18 years, inspiring the great children's novel "Island of the Blue Dolphins."

60 feet of towering steel balances gracefully.

A hardware store Buddha statue installed to deter vandalism wound up attracting Vietnamese immigrants who came to pray.

This ultra-modern California span is actually a titanic solar clock in disguise built by famed architect Santiago Calatrava.

Masterful ceramic fountain and map of the Pacific Basin.

The world's largest outdoor organ is played weekly by one of just two civic organists in the U.S.

Humboldt's human-powered sculptures race across land and sea for days on end in a wacky quest for dominance.

The decor of this Hollywood movie palace just barely predated the opening of King Tut's tomb.

This little gem of Spanish Colonial architecture has been abandoned since the 1950s.

An abandoned boat that's been stranded mysteriously for decades.

A ghost town originally established and governed solely by Black Americans seeking a place of their own, free from discrimination.

The tiniest tiki room in San Diego.

In the days before HD projectors and IMAX, some of the most powerful projectors belonged to planetariums.

Dentist's hated concrete colossi are now beloved icons of the community.

An ode to the friendship between four Pacific Rim countries.

The small family-run business has kept alive the fading art of creating beautiful handmade book covers.

A huge work of Burning Man-inspired outsider art on the grounds of a California winery.

A historic fort commemorating the United States' naval history.

San Francisco's first World's Fair, dedicated to the wonders of California.

One of the first skyscrapers in Santa Monica, and a famous getaway for the Hollywood elite of then and now.

Educational foundation that teaches the powers of fourth dimensional physical properties.

The beloved dining spot stands at the cross-section of Hollywood and the Old West.

The world's most famous donkey lives in this pen.