Only the most intrepid urban explorers cross the tattered ruins of the old Iron Curtain to endure the excessive bureaucracy, military paranoia and freezing winds of the East to hunt for the ghosts of an empire. Rebecca Litchfield is one who couldn’t resist the haunting allure of the ruins of the Soviet Union.

Migrants storm into a train at the Keleti train station in Budapest, Hungary, September 3, 2015 as Hungarian police withdrew from the gates after two days of blocking their entry. (Photo by Laszlo Balogh/Reuters)

A reveller covered in paint takes part during the annual Cascamorras festival in Guadix, southern Spain September 9, 2015. The festival was inspired by a dispute between the town of Baza and Guadix over the possession of an icon of the Virgin of Piedad. The Cascamorras refers to representatives from Guadix, who were sent to Baza to recover the statue. As the Cascamorras had to stay perfectly clean to gain possession of the statue, Baza residents attempt to make them as “dirty” as possible. (Photo by Marcelo del Pozo/Reuters)

Tourists play in front of a 3D painting on the wall of a house in Luoyuan village, Jinhua, Zhejiang province, August 26, 2015. The village hired a team to put on 3D paintings all over the valley as a method to attract tourists and improve the income of local villagers, according to local media. (Photo by Reuters/China Daily)

Students of the "Escola de Papai Noel do Brasil" (Brazil's school of Santa Claus) travel on a ferry through Guanabara bay, during their graduation ceremony in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, November 10, 2015. The school holds 4 days' lessons in Santa-training, teaching Christmas carols, how to interact with children, and also how to wear the heavy red suit in Rio's typical 104-degree (40 degrees celsius) summer weather that is common around the holidays. (Photo by Pilar Olivares/Reuters)

A woman cries after her husband was shot dead by unidentified gunmen riding motorcycles in Manila, Philippines late October 10, 2016. According to police reports, around 2,300 people have been killed in Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's war against illegal drugs. The figure was revised by the police from an original tally of around 3,600 deaths. (Photo by Damir Sagolj/Reuters)

German police officers take pictures as fireworks explode next to the Quadriga sculpture atop the Brandenburg gate during New Year celebrations in Berlin, Germany, January 1, 2017. (Photo by Fabrizio Bensch/Reuters)

Vendors selling candied haws wait for customers at the Harbin Ice and Snow Festival in Harbin, China, January 4, 2016. The festival is open from Jan. 5 till Feb. 5, 2016, and is aimed at attracting both foreign and local visitors to experience the beauty of the ice and snow. (Photo by Wang Zhao/AFP Photo)