The Craziest Gas Stations in the World

Going to the gas station has to be one of the most miserable aspects of owning a car. It's almost like a symbol of evil in the auto world. A necessary evil, of course, but an evil nonetheless. And the people who set the prices are obviously the devil, because only the devil could possibly decide to up the price per gallon 10 cents as you're pulling up to the pump. Not only is gas a money suck, but a lot of people hate the smell and the filth of hitting up your local BP or Shell (we like the scent of gas, but we just assume we're weird like that).

The sasquatch of the oil world is a gas station that is actually really cool, designed well, and enjoyable to visit. Unlike the missing link, though, we know they exist. Seriously. They're just extremely, extremely rare. That's why we took it upon ourselves to take the time and effort to locate them for you to give you a shred of hope. One was even used as an art installation as part of a worldwide protest movement. Gas up with 11 of The Craziest Gas Stations in the World.

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Location: Koboko district, West Nile region, Uganda

This relatively tiny gas station was built out of a shipping container. It's both unique and making the most of recycled materials.

Location: Los Angeles, Calif.

Kanner Architects designed this modern nod to the past fairly recently -- 2009, in fact. This gas station sits at one of those intersections where there are other gas stations on each corner, but some customers say they'll go out of their way and bust a U-turn to get to this one. Design matters.

Location: All over Spain

Simple geometric shapes and bright colors act as a beacon to tell you when a Repsol Service Station is just on the horizon. They refuse to blend into the environment, and hopefully wake your road-weary eyes up in the process.

Location: Konstanz, Germany -- will open 10 more locations in Germany in 2013 and an estimated 100 in 2014

Too busy to get your hair cut, but you have time to put some gas (sorry, petrol) in your car? Do you happen to be in Germany? If so, you can do both at once by visiting a handy Tank & Cut location. Entrepreneur Ralph Mehlmann thought the two went together as nicely as schnitzel and sauerkraut, and he hopes the German public will, too.

Location: Beverly Hills, Calif.

That swooping, angular roof was once intended as a part of the construction of LAX. When it wasn't needed, it was repurposed as the roof of this gas station that stands out and attracts visitors from around the world.

Location: Matúškovo, Slovakia

Gas station or convenient spaceship landing pad? You be the judge.

Location: Zillah, Wash.

Erected as a reminder of the Teapot Dome scandal that rocked the Harding administration in 1921, this service station was listed in the National Historical Register in 1985. At one point in its life, it was partially destroyed while being moved, but has since been repaired. Since that time, it has fallen into disrepair. An organization called Friends of the Teapot is trying to save it, because it means so much to Zillah.

Location: Cuneo, Italy

This isn't just a place to refuel your car. It's a place to refuel yourself. With that idea in mind, architects Duilio Damilano and Alberto Pascale purposely separated the main building from the service area. Its inviting modern design practically commands you to get out of your car and stretch a little.

Location: Syracuse, N.Y.

What you see before you is the product of a collaboration between members of the International Fiber Collective. Each participant created a small piece utilizing their favorite means of fiber expression to tell the world why they felt that society needs to lessen its dependence on oil. Then, all the individual pieces were sewn together to create this gigantic wrap for an abandoned gas station, for which the owner had signed papers allowing this art installation. Even the gas pumps were covered.

Location: Los Angeles, Calif.

Sure, this gas station is eye-catching even if you know nothing about it. But would you like to ponder the paradox that is a gas station that attempts to be environmentally responsible? Besides having solar panels on top, it's constructed from reclaimed and environmentally sustainable materials. Contaminated water is collected, filtered, and used to water the gardens it has on-site. If that isn't enough, you can drop off a lot of your recycling here, including old cell phones. Proceeds are donated to charity.

Location: Asmara, Eritrea

Wondering what a crazy futurist airplane-looking gas station is doing in the capital of Eritrea (on the eastern side of Afrida, for those who don't know)? For the 51 years between 1890 and 1941, the area now known as Eritrea was an Italian colony. It was also the place Mussolini sent avant-garde architects like Giuseppe Pettazzi, who brought the Fiat Tagliero Building to life.

According to legend, local authorities wanted traditional pillars installed to support the wings. However, the story goes that Pettazzi held a gun to the construction foreman's head and forced him to go through with constructing the building as planned -- with no such pillars. Further legend has it that Pettazzi also stood on one of the wings after construction and said he would shoot himself if his design wasn't structurally sound. Whether or not this actually happened, we'll probably never know, but it makes for a great story. The building remains structurally sound to this day, surviving several colonial occupations and environmental changes alike.