This vintage car parts store is also a museum devoted to a squat little gem of automotive history.

A classically trained chef makes beloved burritos inside a gas station.

This "synagogue" is not what it seems to be.

A Cold War site complete with rusty structures, hiking trails, and beautiful views.

This serene oasis in an affluent Los Angeles neighborhood holds some of Gandhi's ashes and got Elvis into Eastern Philosophy.

The neighborhood shop is a sort of tiny cactus museum full of exotic specimens you can take home.

A fashion designer's dazzling world of Japanese collectibles is hidden in a warehouse downtown.

Once strictly off-limits, this lower level housing curious and priceless vehicles of the Petersen Automotive Museum is now open to the public.

This “living museum” at UCLA exhibits thousands of plant species from all over the world.

Every weekend, the parking lot of this Buddhist temple turns into a Thai street-food paradise.

A faux European lane smack dab in downtown L.A.

Historic funicular railway, believed to be the shortest railroad in the world.

World-famous, Pink's still manages to keep its prized cult fetish status.

Non-profit time travel mart sells goods you would need for a trip through the fourth dimension.

Scores of vintage street lamps shine along L.A.’s Miracle Mile.

A prohibition-style speakeasy takes up residence in the last Victorian residence in Hollywood.

Hollywood's most famous landmark, the "temporary" sign that has stood for decades longer than intended.

America's most famous piece of self-built architecture.

This iconic L.A. bookshop is housed in an abandoned bank—both symbolic and chic.

Medieval museum built over Roman baths that features famous tapestries of a lady and a unicorn.

The Sun King's military models, saved from the Louvre.

This structure atop a craggy cliff in one of the most beautiful parks in Paris boasts an unbeatable view.

Got apples?

An overlooked marble is the only surviving in-place 18th century example of the measurement that changed how we define distance.