American actor and musician Jared Leto climbs The Empire State Building on November 08, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Roy Rochlin/Getty Images for Empire State Realty Trust)

American professional wrestler Jade Cargill visits The Empire State Building on July 31, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Roy Rochlin/Getty Images for Empire State Realty Trust)

Alkar Vito runs during the Children's Alka competition in Vuckovici village, Croatia, August 23, 2015. Children's Alka is a tournament which has been held every August in the Croatian village of Vuckovici since 1955, commemorating the victory over the Ottoman Turkish administration. The tournament is named after the ring, Alka, which children have to hit with their spears. (Photo by Antonio Bronic/Reuters)

American pop star Nicole Scherzinger, 43, of NBC's Annie Live! and FOX's The Masked Singer visits The Empire State Building on November 12, 2021 in New York City. (Photo by Roy Rochlin/Getty Images for Empire State Realty Trust)

Festivalgoers during the 2018 Coachella Valley Music And Arts Festival at the Empire Polo Field on April 20, 2018 in Indio, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for Coachella)

Irish television personality and presenter Maura Higgins showed off her platinum hairdo on April 18, 2022 at the annual music and arts festival Coachella festival held at the Empire Polo Club in California. (Photo by Instagram)

Vietnamese-American singer and songwriter Thuy poses for a portrait backstage at the 2024 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival at Empire Polo Club on April 13, 2024 in Indio, California. (Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for Coachella)

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.