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.

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)

Andrey Pavlov is a photographer and he takes photographs of ants in stunning poses along with certain props that make the images even more fantasy-like. You’ve probably never seen ant photographs like these before.

Hindu pilgrims walk along a mountain path as they make their pilgrimage to the sacred Amarnath Cave, one of the most revered Hindu shrines, near Baltal, Kashmir, India. (Photo by Daniel Berehulak)

Members of the Communist New Fourth Army on parade. Note how the modern equipment contrasts with the shoeless soldiers in the foreground. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images). 6th July 1946

Choristers from a Norwegian choir on a visit to New York take photographs in Times Square. (Photo by Vecchio/Three Lions/Getty Images). Circa 1956

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko gestures during a news conference in Kiev, Ukraine, June 5, 2015. REUTERS/Mykhailo Markiv/Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Pool

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)