Arresting architecture around the world

Colorful lights contrast with the dark windows of an apartment building along Tokyo Bay in Japan. As Japan’s largest city, Tokyo has over nine million residents and apartments are a popular choice for many of them.

A woman’s rich blue clothes stand out among the Escher-like staircases of Panna Meena ka Kund in Jaipur, India. Built in the 16th century, the entwining stairs held community gatherings.

The modern lines of the Metropol Parasol frame the historic buildings of Seville, Spain, contrasting old and new. Also known as “The Mushrooms,” the Metropol Parasol was designed by German architect Jürgen Mayer to be the largest wooden construction in the world.

Colorful buildings surround the Monument to Party Founding in North Korea’s capital city. The monument recognizes the Workers’ Party of North Korea, and uses a hammer, paintbrush, and sickle to represent workers, intellectuals, and farmers, respectively. (Read about a train ride through the countryside of North Korea.)

A view of a Singaporean apartment building gives a glimpse into the lives of its residents. In a city of high-rises, many choose to decorate with plants—the Singapore Garden Festival even features a Balcony Garden display to inspire participants to transform their own spaces.

Skylights illuminate a reader in the Stuttgart City Library in Stuttgart, Germany. From the outside, the library is a large cube that looks white during the day and transforms to a glowing royal blue at night.

Light streams through the windows of the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, one of the world’s oldest shopping malls. Its popularity with the city’s elite in the 19th and 20th centuries led to the building to be nicknamed “Milan’s Drawing Room."

Patrons ride the mind-bending escalator at the Nu Sentral mall in Kuala Lumpur. Full of brand-name stores and restaurants and located directly next to the KL Sentral transportation hub, it’s a convenient excursion for locals and visitors alike.

Reflections from late afternoon light dance off a building in Midtown Manhattan. Midtown, one of the largest business districts in the world, is known for its iconic buildings, including the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building.

A cyclist passes by the back of the German Chancellery building in Berlin. The building’s modern architecture includes large glass walls, which are intended to emphasize transparency in government.

An interior view of the hypnotising fractals of the Marmara University Faculty of Theology Mosque in Istanbul. Located in the Altunizade neighborhood, the architecture is a modern take on classical Ottoman design.

In Morocco visitors stroll through the Hassan II Mosque, one of the largest mosques in the world. Hassan II boasts the largest minaret, or tower, of any mosque—the structure reaches over 650 feet high and sits right on the Atlantic Ocean. (See 38 of the most inspiring holy places in the world. )

The lines of an intricate sculpture combine with the floors of the Hyatt Regency San Francisco to create an array of shape and light. The sculpture, entitled Sphere, was created by artist Charles O. Perry and consists of 1,400 pieces of metal tube stretching 40 feet high.

A lone passenger ascends the escalator in Belgium’s Liège-Guillemins train station. Spanish architect and designer Santiago Calatrava used the arched roof to physically and symbolically combine an urban and residential section of the city.

The historic buildings of Rue de Rivoli in Paris, France, are reflected with a modern twist. One of the most famous streets in the city, the Rue de Rivoli is lined with fashion boutiques and art galleries, especially near the Louvre.

A close-up of the dizzying details of the Messeplatz exhibition space in Basel, Switzerland. While many visit the building to see large-scale art installations, the architecture is itself a work of art.

Primary colours peek through a window on an Italian beach. Bordered by the Adriatic and Ionian Seas, the southern region of Puglia boasts almost 500 miles of coastline and is home to some of the country’s best beaches.

A visitor explores the bright passages of Japan’s 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art. The circular building was designed without a front entrance so as to discourage people from approaching the art “from only one direction."

A view of the intricate ceiling of the Music Hall in Iran’s Ali Qapu grand palace. The unusual cutouts in the ceiling are both beautiful and functional—they were designed to dampen echoes and enhance acoustics for musical performances.

A figure walks through La Grande Arche de la Défense, a monument designed to be a “window onto the world." The Grande Arche weighs over 33,000 tons and required 4.4 million cubic feet of concrete to build.