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 group of costumed fans attend Comic-Con International at San Diego Convention Center on July 12, 2015 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Daniel Knighton/Getty Images)

A small Leatherback sea turtle heads towards the sea during the sunset at Lhoknga beach in Aceh province on February 25, 2023. (Photo by Chaideer Mahyuddin/AFP Photo)

Deshauna Barber (C) of the District of Columbia poses with other contestants after being crowned Miss USA 2016 during the 2016 Miss USA pageant at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S., June 5, 2016. (Photo by Steve Marcus/Reuters)

Aldi SugandaRizal (2 years-old) smoking a cigarette while playing at the family home in Sekayu district, South Sumatera, Indonesia on May 23, 2010. (Photo by Ardiles Rante/Barcroft Media)

Spanish MotoGP rider Joan Mir (R) of Team Suzuki Ecstar and other MotoGP racers ride mini electric motorcycles at a fan event at Twin Ring Motegi in Motegi, Japan, 17 October 2019. The event was held ahead of the MotoGP race of Japan's Motorcycling Grand Prix scheduled for 20 October 2019. (Photo by Toru Hanai/EPA/EFE)

Dancers from the “Legend Lin Dance Theatre” perform the artistic director and choreographer Li-chen Lin's classic works “Hymne aux Fleurs qui Passent, Anthem to the Fading Flowers” during a rehearsal at the National Theater Concert Hall in Taipei, Taiwan, Tuesday, August 18, 2015. “Hymne aux Fleurs Qui Passent” pays tribute to the cycle of the year and the complementary principles of Yin and Yang whose eternal struggle provides the driving force behind the changing of the seasons. (Photo by Chiang Ying-ying/AP Photo)

People board a passenger bus during rush hour at a bus terminal, amidst the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Mumbai, India, September 9, 2020. (Photo by Niharika Kulkarni/Reuters)