martinbanks's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Sirang-ri, South Korea

Haedong Yonggungsa

One of only a handful of seaside temples in Korea, this sacred space is home to a legendary healing Buddha statue and a traffic safety prayer pagoda.
Supai, Arizona

Havasupai Falls

This secluded aqua waterfall in the Grand Canyon is the perfect swimming hole, and the Havasupai tribe's fiercely protected natural wonder.
San Diego, California

Balboa Park Moreton Bay Fig Tree

One of the largest trees of its kind in California.
San Diego, California

Sunny Jim Cave Store

Behind this beachfront shop lies a spectacular, colorful sea cave with an equally colorful past.
Encinitas, California

Encinitas Boat Houses

These unusual houses look like giant boats that washed ashore on a residential street.
Wailea-Makena, Hawaii

Kanaio Coast

A cooled lava flow from the Haleakalā volcano formed these surreal-looking columnar basalt structures.
Hong Kong

Quarry Bay 'Monster Building'

This hulking behemoth is actually five interconnected towers built in the 1960s.
Taipei City, Taiwan

Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hall

Memorial to the father of the Republic of China.
Seoul, South Korea

Sewoon Sangga (Sewoon Plaza)

Its humdrum facade only adds to its electrifying appeal: a rooftop with panoramic views of a shapeshifting metropolis.
Seoul, South Korea

War Memorial of Korea

Home to more than 13,000 pieces of war memorabilia and military equipment.
Xiulin Township, Taiwan

Taroko Gorge

An extraordinary natural landscape of mountains, waterfalls, and rocky cliffs riddled with tunnels.
Seoul, South Korea

108 Heaven Stairway

A remnant of Korea's colonial past lies forgotten in a hip neighborhood in Seoul.
Seoul, South Korea

Seodaemun Prison

A chilling monument to Korean patriots who resisted the Japanese occupation.
San Francisco, California

Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption

The neighborhood church casts a breast-shaped shadow that locals have come to call the “two o’clock titty.”
San Francisco, California

Secret Tiled Staircase

An artsy hidden staircase leads to breathtaking views of San Francisco.
Paro, Bhutan

Paro Taktsang

The small cliffside monastery known as the Tiger's Nest is said to be the meditation site of an eighth-century Buddhist master.
New Delhi, India

Bahá'í Lotus Temple

A blooming house of worship for the masses.
Thimphu, Bhutan

Buddha Dordenma Statue

This giant Buddha statue has 125,000 smaller Buddhas hidden inside it.
Calipatria, California

Carcass Beach

At this deceptively beautiful beach, nothing is what it seems.
Tokyo, Japan

Akihabara Electric Town

Once a black market electronics marketplace, now an otaku shopper's paradise.