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Baabe, Germany
Fischerstrand Baabe
When Baabe's fishermen didn't want a bathing facility on their landing spot, they sawed down the construction piles at night.
From the CommunityRed
Is it warm in here? Red, often associated with love, passion, and all things hot, you might need to cool off after exploring this collection.
Llandudno, United Kingdom
Llandudno Seafront
Llandudno's seafront shelters were rebuilt from 1899 plans found in a desk drawer, erasing 1960s 'concrete monstrosities.'
From the Community
Lakeside, Colorado, United States
Lakeside Amusement Park
To sell beer at his amusement park, a Denver brewer incorporated his own town: population 16, with its own police force.
From the Community
Kyiv, Ukraine
Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv
The red paint predates WWI by 72 years, but tour guides still blame Nicholas II for the color choice that actually matched an imperial order's ribbon.
From the Community
Jeju-si, South Korea
Iho Tewoo Horse Lighthouses
Jeju's horse-shaped lighthouses honor an island that once supplied 30,000 horses to Mongol conquerors: and nearly lost the breed.
From the Community
Nagoya, Japan
Chūō Postal Box
Japan's iconic red postboxes weren't always red: they were black until 1901, when too many people mistook them for toilets.
From the Community
Marstal, Denmark
Ærø Beach Huts
A century-old regulation keeps beach huts frozen in time: no electricity, no water, no changes.
AWA visted here
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Sæby, Denmark
Voerså Havn
Where Denmark's Voer River pauses before the sea, creating a harbor so quiet the birds outnumber the boats.
From the Community
Vienna, Austria
Wiener Riesenrad
129 years later, the wheel that survived fire, war, and bankruptcy still turns to this day.
AWA visted here
Dublin, Ireland
Ambassador Cinema
Every ticket sold at this cinema helped deliver babies for nearly two centuries.
From the Community
Raleigh, North Carolina, United States
Larry’s Beans
A Raleigh roaster funds $500 teacher grants and runs a telephone booth library because caffeinating communities goes beyond beans.
From the Community
Christchurch, United Kingdom
The Regent
Bingo saved this 1931 Art Deco cinema from demolition, then 100+ volunteers brought it back as a theatre in 1983.
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Galveston, Texas, United States
Ashbel Smith Building
Texas's first medical school opened in 1891 with 23 students and almost no equipment, but survived America's deadliest hurricane.
From the Community
Dublin, Ireland
Polaris Building, Dublin City University
DCU's Polaris Building corralled 3,000 students from four scattered buildings into one €80 million facility during a pandemic.
From the Community
Brooklyn, New York, United States
Parkside Avenue Subway Station
This Brooklyn station is literally split: two-thirds tunnel through buildings, one-third open to sky: a subway chimera.
From the Community
Sao Paulo, Brazil
Parque Minhocão
Named after a quasi-fictitious earthworm-like creature that burrows through São Paulo.
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Kingston SE, South Australia, Australia
The Big Lobster
Modeled on a real stuffed lobster, Larry was voted Australia's #1 Big Thing in 2021 beating over 1,000 competitors.
From the Community
West Coast Region, New Zealand
Brewster Hut
At 1,460 metres in New Zealand's Southern Alps, this hut has no heating and a water tank that runs dry when you need it most.
From the Community
Cabo Pulmo, Baja California Sur, Mexico
Cabo Pulmo EcoAdventures
This fishing village gave up fishing in 1995. Now it has the largest fish biomass recovery ever recorded in a marine reserve.
From the Community
London, United Kingdom
Royal College of Music
The future King Edward VII opened a music college in 1883 where talent mattered more than birthright.
From the Community
London, United Kingdom
Chelsea Embankment
How a river too putrid for Queen Victoria became one of London's most pristine waterfronts.
From the Community
Guadalajara, Mexico
Biblioteca Iberoamericana Octavio Paz
A 16th-century Jesuit college turned an identity crisis into a storybook future.
From the Community
Struer, Denmark
Grisetå Odde Fyr
This Danish lighthouse guides ships through treacherous straits and graces cheese packages in German grocery stores.
From the Community
Matakana, New Zealand
Matakana Post Centre
A post centre for 570 people, dressed in herringbone tiles as if expecting royalty—or at least a second glance.
From the Community
Freeport, Maine, United States
Desert of Maine
A dinner-plate-sized patch of sand grew to swallow forty acres, buildings, and all.
From the Community
Jaipur, India
Polo Palladio
An Italian restaurant inside a polo club where the most famous player died mid-match, because legends never retire.
AWA visted here
Jaipur, India
Raj Mandir
Opened in 1976, this Art Deco cinema sold out every single day for 25 years and seats 1,300 in gem-named categories.
AWA visted here
Jaipur, India
Gem Cinema
Closed in 2005, this cinema sat dark for 15 years until its original projectionist returned to restart the projectors for a 2019 festival.
AWA visted here
Agra, India
Ganeshi Lall Emporium
Founded in 1845, this Agra emporium houses a jeweled carpet that took one craftsman 9.5 years to finish.
AWA visted here
Geneva, Switzerland
Bijouterie CD I Love You
A jewelry store in Geneva’s neighborhood where love is the local specialty.
From the Community
Sydney, Australia
Hornby Lighthouse
Built in 1858 after two devastating shipwrecks, Hornby Lighthouse still stands at the edge of South Head..
From the Community
London, United Kingdom
Piccadilly Circus Station
Piccadilly Circus Station, built in 1906 and reshaped underground by Charles Holden, remains the true heart of the square—moving millions quietly beneath the neon above.
From the Community
Beograd, Serbia
Boem Bar Brasserie
Skadarlija, a historic street in Belgrade, is the epitome of bohemian charm.
From the Community
Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard
Northernmost
Ny-Ålesund, populated by a few dozen people, is the world’s northernmost permanent settlement.
Svalbard, Svalbard
Where Polar Bears Apply
Polar bears are collectively referred to as an “aurora” or as a “celebration”—until you find yourself face-to-face with one.