20 Best Sights in USA

Construction of the world's sixth-largest cathedral began in 1907 with a rock from the village of Bethlehem and the structure has been the spiritual symbol of Washington ever since. It was finally completed in 1990. Like its 14th-century English Gothic counterparts, it has a nave, flying buttresses, transepts, and vaults, all built stone by stone. The stunning cathedral is Episcopalian, but it's the site of frequent interfaith services. State funerals for presidents Eisenhower, Reagan, Ford, and George H. W. Bush, as well as Senator John McCain, were held here, and the tomb of Woodrow Wilson—the only president buried in Washington, D.C.—is in the south nave. The Pilgrim Observation Gallery provides a wonderful view of the city, and the cathedral is blessed with the lovely Bishop's Garden, designed by Frederick Law Olmsted Jr., with fruit trees, towering oaks and yews, and roses interspersed with stonework from European ruins. A variety of tours is offered, including the popular "Gargoyle" tours. The cathedral is acclaimed for its year-round concerts, national holiday commemorations, and other musical performances.

Your mouth is sure to drop to the floor the first time you lay eyes on this stunning structure, a nine-sided building that incorporates architectural styles and symbols from many of the world's religions. With its delicate lacelike details and massive dome, the Louis Bourgeois design emphasizes the 19th-century Persian origins of the Bahá'í religion. The formal gardens are as symmetrical and harmonious as the building they surround. The Bahá'í faith advocates spiritual unity, world peace, racial unity, and equality of the sexes. Stop by the welcome center to examine exhibits that explain it; you can also ask for a guide to show you around.

This Benedictine monastery on a 300-foot-high butte was founded in 1882 and is the site of one of two modernist buildings in the United States designed by Finnish architect Alvar Aalto. A masterpiece of serene and thoughtful design, Aalto's library opened its doors in 1970, and has become a place of pilgrimage for students and aficionados of modern architecture. You also can sample beers produced by the abbey's in-house brewery (the aptly named Benedictine Brewery) at its taproom just up the road.

Storyboards near this ancient heiau (sacred site) recount the significance of the many sacred structures found along the Wailua River. It's unknown exactly how the ancient Hawaiians used Poliahu Heiau—one of the largest pre-Christian temples on the island—but legend says it was created by the Menehune, the legendary race of little people who were quick builders, because of the unusual stonework found in its walled enclosures. From this site, drive downhill toward the ocean to pohaku hoohanau, a two-piece birthing stone said to confer special blessings on all children born there, and pohaku piko, whose crevices were a repository for umbilical cords left by parents seeking a clue to their child's destiny, which reportedly was foretold by how the cord fared in the rock. Some Hawaiians feel these sacred stones shouldn't be viewed as tourist attractions, so always treat them with respect. Never stand or sit on the rocks or leave any offerings.

A magnificent avenue of pines and moss-laden oaks leads to the entrance of the first international branch of Sacred Heart schools (founded in 1821) and the site of the only Vatican-certified miracle to occur in the United States. The miracle occurred when nuns at the convent said novenas to St. John Berchmans, a 15th-century Jesuit priest, on behalf of Mary Wilson, a very ill novice. St. John Berchmans subsequently appeared to Mary twice, and she was suddenly and unexpectedly cured. St. John Berchmans was canonized in 1888. Make an appointment to enter a shrine on the exact site of the miracle, as well as to tour the convent including its museum with artifacts dating from the school's occupation by Union troops during the Civil War.

Construction began in 1913, but Raymond Pitcairn, who provided the vision and the funds, insisted that the cathedral be built the old way—he wanted a medieval cathedral and he wanted the medieval techniques of stone cutting and stained glass making used as well. The cathedral was built from models, not blue prints, and these models became adaptable over the course of construction. While the cathedral is impressive from the outside, the most interesting architectural discoveries are in the inside, where it becomes more than a copy of medieval motifs, and where many New Church beliefs are melded into the architecture. Throughout the interior is optical refinement, meaning there are no hard angles, and no two things are the same—every archway, door, and window is slightly different; even every lock has its own special key, and no two carving details are alike. The walls are all slightly curved. Known for its stained glass, which was all made on site, the actual cathedral is a wash of red and blue, a stunning glow that changes throughout the day, depending on the sun. The church requests that you call ahead for groups of 10 or more.

Long before it became a shopping and browsing destination, Carmel was an important religious center during the establishment of Spanish California. That heritage is preserved in the Mission San Carlos Borroméo del Rio Carmelo, more commonly known as the Carmel Mission. Founded in 1771, it served as headquarters for the mission system in California under Father Junípero Serra. Adjoining the stone church is a tranquil garden planted with California poppies. Museum rooms at the mission include an early kitchen, Serra's spartan sleeping quarters and burial shrine, and the first college library in California.

The present-day English Gothic church, completed in 1887, has pitched gables, an architectural detail that prefigured the New Orleans Victorian style. Its congregation was actually established in 1805, however, making it the first non–Roman Catholic church in the Louisiana Purchase territory.

If you look north toward Anvil Mountain, you'll see the Christ of the Mines Shrine, the centerpiece of which is a 12-ton statue of Jesus carved out of Italian marble. The shrine was erected in 1959 and has been credited with a handful of miracles over the subsequent years. A moderately strenuous 1-mile hike leads to the shrine, which has memorable views of the surrounding San Juan Mountains.

By appointment, you can drive or walk through the grounds and cemetery of the first Jesuit seminary in the south, as well as visit the beautiful interior of the Church of St. Charles Borromeo.

The shrine houses the largest collection of Abraham Lincoln artifacts on the West Coast. You can view a marble bust of Lincoln by sculptor George Grey Barnard, along with more than a dozen letters and rare pamphlets. The gift shop sells many books, toys, and reproductions pertaining to the Civil War.

A 35-foot golden and green statue of the Virgin Mary standing atop a globe dominates the Pope Paul VI Pilgrim Plaza that welcomes curious visitors and religious pilgrims to this Roman Catholic shrine. From its perch in Orient Heights, the shrine also boasts some pretty spectacular views of Logan Airport and the downtown skyline. Beneath the plaza, a sprawling sanctuary offers a quiet retreat, and some holy relics are on display. Masses are offered weekly in English, Spanish, and Portuguese.

Talk about religious conversions: in the mid-1960s, the Lenox Casino was transformed into this house of worship and cultural center and given bright yellow arches and a huge, green, aluminum dome that loudly proclaims its presence in a neighborhood of churches. Once functioning as Temple No. 7 under the Nation of Islam with a message of Black nationalism, the mosque was bombed after the assassination of Malcolm X, who had preached here. It was then rebuilt and renamed in honor of the name Malcolm took at the end of his life, El-Hajj Malik Shabazz; its philosophy now is one of inclusion.

These days the Sunni congregation has a large proportion of immigrants from Senegal, many of whom live in and around 116th Street. Next door is Graceline Court, a 16-story luxury condominium building that cantilevers somewhat awkwardly over the mosque.

Two churches stand side by side here: a newer multidomed basilica and the small adobe Mission San Francisco de Asís, the latter being the city's oldest standing structure along with the Presidio Officers' Club. Completed in 1791, it's the sixth of the 21 California missions founded by Franciscan friars in the 18th and early 19th centuries. Its ceiling depicts original Ohlone Indian basket designs, executed in vegetable dyes. The tiny chapel includes frescoes and a hand-painted wooden altar.

There's a hidden treasure here: a 20-by-22-foot mural with images including a dagger-pierced Sacred Heart of Jesus, painted with natural dyes by Native Americans in 1791, was found in 2004 behind the altar. Interesting fact: Mission San Francisco de Asís was founded on June 29, 1776, five days before the Declaration of Independence was signed.

The small museum in the mission complex covers its founding and history, and the pretty cemetery—which appears in Alfred Hitchcock's film Vertigo—contains the graves of mid-19th-century European immigrants. The remains of an estimated 5,000 Native Americans who died at the mission lie in unmarked graves.

Known as the King of the Missions, the 18th, the largest, and the most prosperous of California's missions was founded in 1798 by Franciscan friars under the direction of Father Fermin Lasuen to help educate and convert local Native Americans. After years of abandonment, it was reestablished in 1895. The sala (parlor), the kitchen, a friar's bedroom, a weaving room, and a collection of religious art and old Spanish vestments convey much about early mission life. A special behind-the-scenes tour starts at 11 am on Saturday, and Mass is held in the main building at noon weekdays.

Dedicated in 1854, this church served as the city's Catholic cathedral until 1891. The verse below the massive clock face beseeched naughty Barbary Coast boys: "Son, observe the time and fly from evil." Across the street from the church in St. Mary's Square, a Beniamino Bufano statue of Sun Yat-sen towers over the site of the Chinese leader's favorite reading spot during his years in San Francisco. On Tuesdays at 12:30 pm, the church hosts free chamber music concerts ( noontimeconcerts.org).  A surprisingly peaceful spot, St. Mary's Square also has a couple of small, well-kept playgrounds, perfect for a break from the hustle and bustle of Chinatown.

In the center of one of the historic area's busy circles, this brick building is one of the city's most prominent places of worship. King William III donated the Communion silver when the parish was founded in 1692, but the first St. Anne's Church wasn't completed until 1704. The second church burned in 1858, but parts of its walls survived and were incorporated into the present structure, which was built the following year. Free guided tours are offered the first and third Monday of every month at 10 am and every Wednesday at 12:30 pm. The churchyard contains the grave of the last Colonial governor, Sir Robert Eden.

This is one of the best-preserved pioneer buildings in the entire state, and it's still used for public meetings and community events. Mormon settlers began work on the tabernacle just a few months after the city of St. George was established in 1863. Upon completion of the sandstone building's 140-foot clock tower 13 years later, Brigham Young formally dedicated the site. Visits are by guided tour.

The mother church of the Acadians and one of the country's oldest Catholic churches, this 1840 building was erected on the site of an earlier church. Inside is a replica of the Lourdes grotto and a baptismal font said to have been a gift from Louis XVI. Emmeline Labiche, who may have inspired Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem "Evangeline," is buried in the small cemetery behind the church.

A light-green pastiche of colonial, Queen Anne, Moorish, and Hindu opulence, with turrets battling red-top onion domes and Victorian detailing everywhere, this 1905 structure is considered the first Hindu temple in the West. Vedanta, an underlying philosophy of Hinduism, maintains that all religions are paths to one goal. It's an interesting building to study from the street.