A medieval stronghold rising over the ruins of ancient Roman villas along Rome's southern coast.

This deceiving white sand beach gets its brilliant hue from the chemical discharge of a nearby factory.

Also known as the Square Colosseum, this building is a prime example of fascist-era rationalist architecture.

This Italian stadium makes liberal use of fascist statuary to evoke classical sporting arenas.

This breathtaking monastery was established by Saint Benedict himself 1,500 years ago.

Centuries ago, red and white wine poured from the statue's breasts whenever a new Venetian ruler was elected.

A medieval fountain lined with 99 unique stone faces whose origins and meaning remain unknown.

In a city that boasts four separate inclined cable railways, this is one of the busiest funicular lines in the world.

This military mausoleum captures the solemn grandeur that most memorials only aspire to.

The world's oldest surviving anatomical theater, where "the dead are pleased to help the living."

A sinister pyramid in the Frari contains the heart of the famous neoclassical sculptor.

The skulls and bones of thousands of soldiers line the walls of this small Italian chapel.

Long-abandoned art nouveau baths beneath Milan's Piazza Oberdan.

This beautiful park on the outskirts of Rome protects the ruins of two colossal ancient aqueducts.

Sitting on an Italian hilltop is this surreal fortress built by the mad inventor of electrohomeopathy.

Renaissance villa and gardens complete with a tormented colossus.

A 16th-century horror show built in a lovely Italian garden.

Now an entertainment complex, the Lingotto building was once an avant-garde auto factory with a test track on the roof.

A visionary Italian architect created an impressive cluster of concrete structures for a family's private tomb.

This giant boulder is sandwiched between apartment complexes in upper Manhattan.

A lovely aquatic park built by a one-armed Civil War veteran who made a fortune from lotuses.

A herd of 150 bison live on California's Santa Catalina Island and are at the heart of an ongoing debate between environmental protection and economic expansion.

Volcanic rocks ground down into sand make this Spanish beach as black as night.

A boardwalk winds through this sliver of coastal nature hidden within Sydney.