6 Unusual Towers To Visit Around The World

The towers are tall structures, usually taller than they are wide, often by a significant margin. These slender buildings are generally built to take advantage of their height, and can stand alone on the ground, or as part of a larger structure. Here we have 12 towers that are significantly different from all other towers, and because of that are preferred by many photographers and tourists.

# Ivy Тower, Belgium

Gruuthuse museum is located in the Belgian city of Bruges and dates from the 15th century. It has a collection of applied art of Bruges from the 13th to the 19th century. Gruuthuse Tower is part of the museum and is better known as the Ivy Tower, because it is mostly covered with ivy vines. The tower looks especially nice in the autumn months, when the leaves of ivy takes on different colors (yellow, orange, red, brown...)

# Guinigi Tower, Italy

The city of Lucca in Tuscany, Italy, is famous for its medieval architecture and intact city walls. Yet among all of its exquisite buildings one stands out. The Torre Guinigi or Guinigi Tower in English, towers over the city. At the top of the 44.5 meter (146ft) high tower is something of a surprise – a garden containing, of all things, oak trees. High above the city this small wood has provided a haven of peace for centuries.

# Kalyazin Tower, Russia

The Kalyazin Bell Tower is a Neoclassical campanile, rising to a height of 74.5 metres (244 ft) over the waters of the Uglich Reservoir on the Volga River opposite the old town of Kalyazin. The steepled belfry was built in 1796–1800 as part of the Monastery of St. Nicholas. When Stalin ordered the construction of the Uglich Reservoir in 1939, the old part of Kalyazin, including several medieval structures, was covered by the waters. The structure became the main object of touristic interest in the east of Tver Oblast, and an islet was shored up underneath. It has a small pier for boats.

# The Leaning Tower of Yekaterinburg, Russia

Yekaterinburg TV Tower is a tall incomplete structure in Yekaterinburg, Russia. Construction works started 1983, but were on-hold at the beginning of the 1990s, as its shaft reached a height of 220 metres (720ft). According to plans, the tower was intended to reach a structural height greater than 400 metres (1,310ft). There are three parts to the building: the trunk of the tower, the lower joint-work with the base and the metallic aerial. The tower has 26 floors in total (not accounting the floors which make up the base).

# Ciechanow Tower, Poland

The Ciechanow Water Tower in Poland is a hyperboloid structure, using hyperboloid geometry which maximizes structural strength with a minimum of material. The Ciechanow Water Tower was built in 1972 by Jerzy Michal Boguslawsk. There are plans to open a restaurant and observation platform at the top of the tower, but the object is currently out of use.

# The Pirate Tower, USA

A Laguna Beach (California) landmark, this medieval-looking tower is located just north of Victoria Beach. Built in 1926, it was designed as a private spiraling staircase for beach access from above. Today the tower is closed but can still be viewed from the outside at low tide. To the uninitiated beach goer, the 60 foot (18m) rocket-like structure seems to have been carved out of the cliff by massive waves hundreds of years ago.