tbherrin's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Xilin Gol, China

Dinosaurs Fairyland

Jurassic theme park in the small town of Erlian.
Sainshand, Mongolia

Danzanravjaa Museum

Hidden treasures belonging to Mongolia's most revered and multi-talented monk spent decades buried in the Gobi desert.
Urgun, Mongolia

Khamriin Khiid

Mongolian Buddhists believe this monastery in the Gobi desert to be the center of the world's spiritual energy.
Itoshima, Japan

Raizan Sennyoji Daihioin Temple

A culturally significant rural temple in the beautiful mountains of Itoshima.
Kyonan, Japan

Nihonji Daibutsu: The Great Buddha of Nihonji

This giant seated Bhudda of Healing dates to the 1780s.
Tokyo, Japan

Ancient Orient Museum

A hole-in-the-wall antiquities museum in one of Tokyo's most popular megamalls.
Hiroshima, Japan

Human Shadow Etched in Stone

An eerie reminder to the horrors of World War II.
Izumo-shi, Japan

Izumo-Taisha

What's believed to be the country's first shrine is, in Shintō mythology, the annual meeting place of the gods.
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.
Kurashiki-shi, Japan

Washuzan Highland

A dilapidated amusement park with a million-dollar view.
Ushiku, Japan

Ushiku Daibutsu: The Great Buddha of Ushiku

The third-tallest statue in the world depicts the "Buddha of Infinite Light," complete with observation deck in his chest.
Sendai-shi, Japan

Sendai Daikannon

One of the tallest statues in the world, and the tallest statue of a goddess in Japan.
Mutsu, Japan

Mount Osore

This mountain's identity is stuck somewhere between a nightmare and a scenic tourist attraction.
Tokyo, Japan

Japanese Sword Museum

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

Atomic Bomb Medical Museum

A sobering scientific reminder of the human damage caused by the advent of the nuclear age.
Itoigawa, Japan

The Jade Coast

You can still find treasures on the pebbly beaches of one of the world's oldest jade-producing areas.
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.
Osaka, Japan

Tavern Pachimon Wars

This bar is filled with Star Wars merchandise from around the world, all of it unlicensed knockoffs.
Osaka, Japan

Fudo Myo-o Statue

A moss-covered statue of a Japanese Buddhist deity stands at a quiet temple in downtown Osaka.
Aso, Japan

Mount Aso Caldera

The largest volcanic caldera in Japan holds an entire city in its maw.
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.
Kyoto, Japan

Rokuon-ji Temple

This 14th-century temple is also known as the "Temple of the Golden Pavilion" for its gorgeous gilded reliquary hall.
Aomori, Japan

Showa Daibutsu

The tallest bronze seated statue of the Buddha in Japan.
Suita-shi, Japan

Tower of the Sun

Closed for decades, this strange symbol of Japan's Expo '70 has finally opened its psychedelic insides to the public.