Some Moscow residents once claimed the bizarre, contorted mass of metal on top of the building was used to manipulate minds.

Moscow's most popular cemetery includes the graves of numerous cosmonauts.

One of the largest collections of socialist realist art shows the surprising depth of the official art of the Soviet Union.

A sculpture park of the tossed aside relics of the USSR, from Stalin to a massive Soviet emblem.

One of the world's tallest statues is also one of its most hated.

Dozens of padlock-trees along the Moscow River.

Thirteen sculptures in central Moscow graphically depicting vices of the modern world.

The reason for the strange contortions in the trunks of these "drunken" pine trees in Russia is still a mystery.

A small part of Russia that does not touch any other part of Russia.

A memorial to the murdered Jews of Kaunas.

Ever-growing collection of devils in art.

Things aren't quite what they seem at this mind-bending museum.

While this monument tile is shrouded in mystery it also marks the end of the longest ever human chain.

The largest coin pyramid in the world is a carefully balanced stack of over 1,000,000 pieces.

This micro-nation may be some sort of prank, but its constitution sure seems official.

A former Latvian headquarters of the brutal KGB secret police is now open as a grim reminder of their atrocities.

A preserved oak tree about 3,500 years old found in Riga, Latvia.

Flamboyant architecture from the turn of 20th century.

Medical museum that houses most notably the taxidermied remains of Vladimir Demikhov's famous two-headed dog experiment.

A stone marker and sculpture in the city of Riga stake a claim for the very first community Christmas tree.

The statue of a legendary giant who carried Christ and shouldered the world's sins.

A small museum contains one of the largest collections of ethnic and traditional headgear in the world.

A black cat protests the City Guild in Riga's Old Town.

The oldest housing complex in Riga is a mini timeline of architectural trends.