Nine of the world's most bizarre buildings

From teapots to crocodiles, there is no shortage of strange and interesting buildings to be found across the globe. Here are nine of the most bizarre:

1 | Mr. Toilet House, South Korea

This two-storey, 4,250 square feet structure set Sim Jae-Duck back approximately $1.1 million. The late Mayor of Suwon, South Korea, spent his life advocating for working, efficient, and clean sanitation for everybody, and had this toilet-shaped structure built in 2007 to mark the inaugural meeting of the World Toilet Association. After his death in 2009, Sim Jae-Duck's family donated the 'Mr. Toilet House' to be used as a museum.

2 | Wuxi Cultural Exhibition Centre, China

This 10-storey teapot in Wuxi in the Jiangsu province was funded by Wang Jianlin, the second richest man in China. The entire structure measures 38.8 metres high, nearly 50 metres in diameter, and has the ability to rotate completely. This cultural exhibition centre is made of aluminium sheet and different sized panels of glazing, with stained glass for the centre.

3 | Heliodome, France

Rather than settle for a typical French cottage, well-known cabinet maker Eric Wasser decided to build his new home in the shape of a large sundial. The angle of the house was calculated precisely to ensure that it would shade and cool the house in summer, and absorb enough sunlight to warm the house in winter. This house is made of wood, glass, and concrete.

4 | The Sliding House, South England

At the end of August 2013, artist Alex Chinneck turned a decrepit old building in Margate, England, into a £100,000 art project entitled 'From the knees of my nose to the belly of my toes'. The curved facade of the building was created using cut off brick glued to bent steel sheets, then cut down to size. The installation remained intact for 12 months before the local council's plan to turn the building into social housing was put into action.

5 | Chaiyi Church, Taiwan

This shoe-shaped church is currently under construction, and set to open to the public on February 8. The shape of this structure was inspired by the story of a young girl from the 1960s, whose wedding was cancelled following the amputation of her legs. The shoe is made out of over 320 glass panels, measures 55ft (16 metres) high, 36ft (10 metres) wide, and cost approximately US$686, 000. The church will not hold regular services, but will be available for pre-wedding photo shoots and wedding ceremonies.

6 | Rotating House, Czech Republic

Engineer Bohumil Ihota built this impressive house approximately 100 kilometres north-east of Prague, somewhere in the Czech countryside. With construction starting in 1981, this 'labour of love' took more than two decades to complete. Amazingly, the entire house can be rotated to let more sunshine in to warm the house, or simply to give Ihota a better view. The structure can also sink down into the hillside with the press of a button, using the earth to cool itself down.

7 | Ice Hotel, Quebec

Hotel de Glace is a seasonal hotel in Canada that exists only between January 4 and March 28. The entire structure takes five weeks, 5oo tonnes of ice, and 15,000 tonnes of snow to craft. The end result is a hotel with ceilings as high as 18ft tall, walls covered with original artwork, as well as furniture and even drinking glasses made from ice.

8 | Factory extension, Southern China

A Hong Kong businessman decided to add two mirror image red-brick villas to the top of his factory in Dongguan, in the Guangddong province of Southern China. The 'extension' had been in place for years before media attention brought light to the fact that these extensions did not match the blueprints that city planning officers had approved. The man was ordered to tear down the villas before they caused any damage or harm.

9 | Crocodile House, Ivory Coast

This house in Abidjan, the former capital of the Ivory Coast, was completed in 2008. The crocodile is made of concrete, and completely hollowed out, making it entirely liveable. It was the work of Moussa Kalo, who passed away only two months before the structure was completed. His apprentice, Thierry Atta, finished the work and moved in to make the crocodile his home.