Niche Museums

First planted between 1880 and 1883 for Jane and Leland Stanford, then restored from 1997 onwards. The 30,000 square foot garden now features over 500 cacti and succulents, 10-15% of which are historical plants still in their original locations.

The House of Broel is a 1850 Victorian mansion in New Orleans which now serves as a wedding venue and museum exhibiting Bonnie Broel's impressive collection of dollhouses. Tours by appointment only.

Describing itself as "Perhaps one of San Francisco's least known eclectic treasures", Audium is a unique sound art event presented weekly since 1967 in pitch darkness in a custom theater with 176 speakers. Founder and composer Stan Shaff still presents his compositions in person every week and will enthusiastically answer your questions after the show.

Housed in a historic cable car barn and powerhouse, this free museum tells the story of San Francisco's unique under-road cable pulled street cars. In addition to vintage cars and other exhibits illustrating the history of the system visitors can descend below the street to see the cables running, or watch the engines that power the cars from a viewing platform.

Travel back in time to a street-scape replica of Tokyo in 1958, the year instant noodles were invented, and sample Ramen from nine different restaurants representing regional varieties of the dish. Easily accessible via bullet train from central Tokyo.

Judy Kaminsky has been selling high-end vintage cookware (mostly French) to the residents and chefs of San Francisco since 1981. Go with intent to buy something - cake stands and antique cocktail glasses are a good target. Don't bring your coffee!

Bequeathed to the nation by the widow of the illegitimate son of the 4th Marquess of Hertford in 1897 on the condition that no object should ever leave the collection, even for loan exhibitions. The collection includes a vast array of French 18th century decorative arts purchased during the revolutionary sales following the French revolution. This includes the Laughing Cavalier and a lot of very shiny decorative weapons and armour.

The tiny town of Locke in the Sacramento delta is a National Historic Landmark, so designated because it represents a unique example of a historic Chinese American rural community. The town's website states that "Locke is no tourist trap, nor is it a ghost town. Its unusual, out-of-the-way charm is genuine." The Dai Loy Museum was a former gambling house, closed down in the 1950s but now restored and open to visitors.

Friedrichshafen, the birthplace of the Zeppelin in 1900, now hosts the definitive Zeppelin museum. A full scale partial model of the Hindenberg lets you explore a recreation of the bar, cabins and smokers' lounge. They also have an original engine nacelle from the LZ 127 Graf Zeppelin and a 3.6 ton Maybach Zeppelin car from 1938, based on the Maybach airship engines and capable of a maximum speed of 170 km/h.

The California State Capitol proudly displays a diorama for every one of California's 58 counties. The dioramas are of varying quality. The process by which they are created and updated over the years is entirely uncoordinated, and appears to be driven by occasional outcries of shame from local county media.

Volunteer run museum covering the history of the oil industry in the local area. They have the world's only surviving wooden oil derrick, a photo exhibit covering the 1910 Lakeview Gusher oil spill and a wonderfully eclectic collection of both indoor and outdoor exhibits.

Artifacts and displays relating to the history of women in aviation and space. The museum tells the story of pioneering aviators such as Harriet Quimby, the first American woman to earn her pilot's license and the first woman to fly across the English channel (in 1912). Also home to the first soft drink dispenser used in space!

Established in 1794 during the French revolution to preserve scientific instruments and inventions - including the laboratory of "father of modern chemistry" Antoine Lavoisier who met his fate at the guillotine. The collection today represents three centuries of French craft and invention, including Foucault’s pendulum, the original model of the Statue Liberty, mechanical looms and a delightful gallery of automata including one that belonged to Marie Antoinette.

Founded in 1975 with the aim of becoming a museum, La Galcante today is a unique store specializing in ephemeral publications: newspapers, magazines, maps, photographs, postcards and more. Some items date back to the 18th century, and the archives here include French and international dailies, society magazines and obscure periodicals. Film directors such as Martin Scorsese have rented material from La Galcante to use as props.

Everything you could want to learn about barometers. They even have one that is powered by a leach! Opening times are restricted due to pending retirement so make an appointment for your visit soon.