aesballard's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
Leaderboard Highlights
aesballard's activity rankings
1st
Places visited in Damascus, Syria
1st
Places visited in Fiji
1st
Places visited in Sewanee, Tennessee
2nd
Places visited in Benin
3rd
Places visited in Caribbean Netherlands
Loading map...
Bangkok, Thailand

Wat Arun

This dazzling Buddhist temple was constructed from over one million ceramic tiles salvaged from a British shipwreck.
Vanuatu

Underwater Post Office

The fully functional, submerged Vanuatu Post Office is definitely one of a kind.
Naboutini, Fiji

Garden of the Sleeping Giant

This garden boasts a magnificent collection of orchids and a spectacular view of the surrounding valley.
Suva, Fiji

Fiji Museum

Recently revamped museum of Fijian history located within a gorgeous colonial-era garden.
Hanoi, Vietnam

Hanoi's Train Street

Twice a day a speeding train passes only inches from the homes of this residential neighborhood.
Vientiane, Laos

Patuxai

When the USA donated cement and funds to expand the airport in Laos, the Laotians built a massive monument instead.
Vientiane, Laos

That Dam (Black Stupa)

This mysterious tower is said to enshrine a dormant seven-headed serpent that once protected Vientiane from destruction.
Almaty, Kazakhstan

Beatles Statue of Almaty

Beatlemania is still going strong... at least in Kazakhstan.
Dushanbe, Tajikistan

Dushanbe Flagpole

The world's second-tallest flagpole stands proud despite dropping rank.
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Mongolian Military Museum

Thousands of artifacts tell Mongolia's military history, from the Bronze Age to the present.
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Natural History Museum of Mongolia

An exceptional assortment of fossils recovered from private collections.
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Genghis Khan Statue Complex

Enormous statue of the Emperor of the Mongols.
Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Chorsu Bazaar

Prowl through this sprawling bazaar under a massive Soviet-era dome for delicious eats.
L'Agulhas, South Africa

Cape Agulhas Marker

This small monument marks the divide between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans at the southernmost tip of Africa.
Mossel Bay, South Africa

The Post Office Tree

South Africa's postal service began with a letter left in a boot beneath this tree.
Tangier, Morocco

Meeting of the Mediterranean and Atlantic

A sign marks where the two bodies of water meet.
Accra, Ghana

Black Star Square

An enormous public square and parade ground built to celebrate Ghana's independence.
Abomey, Benin

Voodoo Temple of Abomey

A giant chameleon, with a fascinating purpose.
Cotonou, Benin

Ganvie Lake Village

Africa's Venice on stilts.
Ouidah, Benin

The Temple of Pythons

Dozens of snakes are housed and worshipped within the walls of this Vodun temple.
Ouidah, Benin

La Porte du Non-Retour (The Door of No Return)

A monument to the more than one million enslaved Africans deported from the port of Ouidah.
Nahr El Kalb, Lebanon

Stelae of Nahr el-Kalb

In a narrow river valley just north of Beirut, Lebanon, is a chronicle of human history unlike anything else in the world.
Santiago Tepeyahualco, Mexico

Aqueduct of Padre Tembleque

In the 16th century, a Franciscan monk pulled off a construction miracle by building a Roman-style aqueduct to save the town of Otumba, Mexico, from certain death.
Damascus, Syria

Umayyad Mosque

Also known as the Great Mosque of Damascus, this is one of the world's largest and oldest mosques.