In this undated handout photo taken by mrwed54, a woman poses for a photo by a lake in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, about 2,800 kilometers (1,750 miles) east of Moscow, Russia. Thousands of Novosibirsk residents, from scantily clad women to newlyweds have been instagramming selfies near the lake nicknamed the “Siberian Malvides” after the far-flung tropical islands in the Indian Ocean. This is in fact is a man-made dumb of coal from a nearby power station that provides for most of Novosibirsk’s energy needs. Environmentalists are warning people against coming into contact with the water. (Photo by mrwed54 via AP Photo)

This picture taken on February 18, 2017 shows a customer holding a crested black macaque in Tomohon market in northern Sulawesi, Indonesia. Authorities and activists are stepping up efforts to persuade villagers on Sulawesi island to stop consuming the critically endangered crested black macaques, one of many exotic creatures that form part of the local indigenous community' s diet. The macaque' s meat is prized by the ethnic Minahasan people, a largely Christian group in the world' s most populous Muslim- majority country, who have no reservation about eating exotic animals, unlike Indonesia' s Islamic communities. (Photo by Bay Ismoyo/AFP Photo)

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.

Girls in swimsuits participate in the Grelka Fest at the ski resort Sheregesh in Tashtagolsky District of Kemerovo Oblast, Russia on April 15, 2018. Skiers and snowboarders from around the world marked the end of the 2017-18 winter season. Wearing bikinis and bathing shorts a total of 1,525 claimed a new Russian record for the daring downhill escapade – in a temperature of around 5ºC. In fact, more have taken part in this GrelkaFest event in the past, but not during an official record attempt. (Photo by Kemerovo Online/The Siberian Times)

As part of FLAIR Melbourne – a Flinders Lane art festival – Melbourne’s Lisa Minogue presents stylised photographic portraits of Australian women of colour, their faces painted vibrantly to accentuate their individuality and encourage the viewer to study each face more closely. Minogue asked each woman the same question: “What do the words “coloured girl” mean to you?”. (Photo by Lisa Minogue/The Guardian)

A man holds his umbrella during snowfall on the Areopagitou pedestrian street beneath the Acropolis hill during snowfall in Athens, Greece, January 10, 2017. (Photo by Alkis Konstantinidis/Reuters)

Cast member Shu Qi poses during a photocall for the film “The Assassin” (Nie yin niang) in competition at the 68th Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, May 21, 2015. (Photo by Eric Gaillard/Reuters)

A man climbs up a wooden pole to get a prize during celebration of Maslenitsa, or Pancake Week, a pagan holiday marking the end of winter, near Rumyantsevo, Moscow region, Russia, February 26, 2017. (Photo by Sergei Karpukhin/Reuters)