Random Windows Spotlight images

If nearby Venice is too crowded and not colorful enough for you, make your way to Burano, a tightly packed collection of small islands in the Venetian Lagoon. Legend holds that all the houses were painted in varying, bright tints so that fishermen could pick out their homes even while out casting nets. Today, if you want to paint your villa in Burano, you send a request to the local government, which will reply with the color options available to you.

While it's only the world's 57th longest cable-stayed bridge, the Nanpu Bridge is considered by many to be one of the most beautiful. It's a seriously stunning span, especially at night when lit up by spotlights shining on its two enormous towers. And as seen in our image, photos snapped from above the bridge can capture a spectacle of zooming car lights—especially when slowed down with long exposure light trail photography. This automotive dazzle makes mesmerizing swirls atop the circular ramps of Nanpu Bridge, turning Shanghai's teeming traffic into a special kind of art.

Sigiriya (aka Lion's Rock), a fortress built atop a dramatic rock formation nearly 600 feet tall, is considered one of the best examples of ancient urban planning still intact. King Kashyapa ruled Sri Lanka until the late 5th century, and he developed Sigiriya as not only a defensive bastion but an elaborate self-contained settlement. Our image features a view of Sigiriya rock from its base, where landscape gardens were laid out as part of the fort complex. Ingenious engineering went into these water features: The fountains, constructed with underground conduits some 1500 years ago, still work today.

Following the king's death, the site became a Buddhist monastery that stood until the 14th century. Today the ruins and beautiful gardens of Sigiriya are a UNESCO World Heritage Site.