La Martinière School

This prestigious boarding school – where British pop legend Sir Cliff Richard studied – was designed and built by influential Frenchman Major General Claude Martin as a palatial home. In 1800 it became his tomb: he's buried in the basement under a blue-washed spiral staircase. The eccentric facade is part Roman archways, part Gothic horror movie, and part Disneyland-style castle, with a jumble of turrets and gargoyles piled merrily atop a long line of Corinthian columns. Best visited in the afternoon.