In a city that gives off a pretty laid-back vibe, the Transamerica Building is a great big, pointy, shiny, enormous reminder that you're in America. But it isn't grotesque or a crude show-off, it has a surprising monolithic dignity and grace and it makes you wonder how the interior designers have coped with all those funny corners.

Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia

Deservedly Sydney’s number one tourist attraction, and now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Opera House is without question one of a kind. It’s as though the architects decided to ignore everything that had gone before and conceive of a whole new type of building. Iconic, without question, but also a truly fantastic photo opportunity when framed by the ‘Coathanger’ of the Harbour Bridge.

Basilica San Marco, Venice, Italy

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Never afraid of displaying their wealth and artistry, the Venetians outdid themselves with Basilica San Marco. Essentially Byzantine in design, what you see now is 600 years’ worth of embellishment, sparkling with gold. Both the interior and exterior are guaranteed to take the breath away.

Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, Spain

Gaudi’s unfinished masterpiece is without doubt Europe’s most unconventional church and possibly the world’s most impressive building site. Dripping in Catholic symbolism and inspired by nature’s curves and undulations, Gaudi lived like a hermit on the site for the last 14 years of his life. He is buried in the crypt, and work is due to continue around him for many years to come.

Museo Guggenheim, Bilbao, Spain

Clustered around a light-flooded, 60-metre atrium, Frank Gehry’s sandstone, glass and titanium Bilbao Guggenheim has been popularly acclaimed as a masterpiece of 20th-century architecture. With its shimmering fish-scale curves - crafted from 60 tons of metal - the building is every bit as much a work of art as the modern and contemporary pieces it houses.

Mehrangarh Fort, Jodhpur, India

Teetering atop 125 metres of sheer rock above the blue city of Jodhpur, Mehrangarh has the last word in grandeur, majesty and sheer invincible scale. With austere ramparts – in parts hewn from the red sandstone and in places over 20 metres thick – contrasting with the opulence and decorative detail of the interior palaces, the vision and determination of the 17 generations of rulers who built the fort is plain to see.

Catedral Metropolitana, Mexico City, Mexico

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