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.

“The Berlin Wall (German: Berliner Mauer) was a barrier constructed by the German Democratic Republic (GDR, East Germany) starting on 13 August 1961, that completely cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin. The barrier included guard towers placed along large concrete walls, which circumscribed a wide area (later known as the “death strip”) that contained anti-vehicle trenches, “fakir beds” and other defenses. The Soviet-dominated Eastern Bloc officially claimed that the wall was erected to protect its population from fascist elements conspiring to prevent the “will of the people” in building a socialist state in East Germany. However, in practice, the Wall served to prevent the massive emigration and defection that marked Germany and the communist Eastern Bloc during the post-World War II period”. – Wikipedia

Photo: West Berlin policemen and East German Volkspolizei face each other across the border in Berlin, circa 1955. (Photo by Three Lions/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

In this December 19, 2014 photo, a man stands beside his 1957 Chevrolet Bel-Air car in Havana, Cuba. U.S. car sales have been banned in Cuba since 1959. Cubans have been have been forced to patch together Fords, Chevrolets and Chryslers that date back to before Fidel Castro's revolution which can make it appear like the country is stuck in a 1950s time warp. Since the Communist economic system isn't likely to change soon, many of those cars will have to stay on the road for years. (Photo by Desmond Boylan/AP Photo)

BERLIN, GERMANY - NOVEMBER 11: Sculptor Oleg Bessonov creates a rosette from clay at the Schlossbauhuette studio where a team of sculptors is creating decorative elements for the facade of the Berliner Schloss city palace on November 11, 2011 in Berlin, Germany. The Berliner Schloss was the residence of the Prussian Kaiser and was among the major architectural landmarks of Berlin until it was heavily damaged by Allied bombing in 1945. The communist authorities of East Berlin demolished the building in the 1950s, and today's Berlin government is pursuing an ambitious project to rebuild the palace according to a design by Italian architect Franco Stella, which will recreate the facade of the building but with a modern interior at a cost of approximately EUR 590 million. The Humboldt Forum, the foundation leading the project, has given the Schlossbauhuette sculptors the formidable task of recreating the hundreds of architectural elements that decorated the facade, and though some original pieces were saved, more often the sculptors have only old black and white photos as reference. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

Retired builder Vasili Sidamonidze, 70, poses for a portrait at his home in Gori, Georgia, December 6, 2016. “Unfortunately, Stalin is not popular nowadays. Our people don't respect him. Only we, members of the (Communist) Party, respect him”, Sidamonidze said. “I always try to attend Stalin's birthday anniversaries in Gori. Unfortunately many people don't want to join us even if they live nearby. They look at us from their windows”. (Photo by David Mdzinarishvili/Reuters)

A journalist reports on a ladder outside the Great Hall of the People during the opening session of the National People's Congress (NPC) in Beijing, China March 5, 2018. The NPC has over 3,000 delegates and is the world's largest parliament or legislative assembly though its function is largely as a formal seal of approval for the policies fixed by the leaders of the Chinese Communist Party. The NPC runs alongside the annual plenary meetings of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), together known as “Lianghui” or “Two Meetings”. (Photo by Thomas Peter/Reuters)

The interior of the ship's bridge on the yacht Galeb is seen in the port city of Rijeka, December 16, 2015. Rijeka announced plans to convert the yacht Galeb used by Yugoslavia's communist leader Josip Broz Tito into a floating museum moored in the city's harbour. Now in disrepair, the 117-metre ship was an iconic symbol of luxury and used by Tito from the 1950s until his death in 1980 to entertain world leaders and celebrities, including the likes of Khruschev, Gaddafi, Indira Gandhi, Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. (Photo by Antonio Bronic/Reuters)

“The Trabant is a car that was produced by former East German auto maker VEB Sachsenring Automobilwerke Zwickau in Zwickau, Sachsen. It was the most common vehicle in East Germany, and was also exported to countries both inside and outside the communist bloc. The main selling points was that it had room for four adults and luggage in a compact, light and durable shell and that it was fast (when introduced) and durable. With its mediocre performance, smoky two-stroke engine, and production shortages, the Trabant is often cited as an example of the disadvantages of centralized planning; on the other hand, it is regarded with derisive affection as a symbol of the failed former East Germany and of the fall of communism (in former West Germany, as many East Germans streamed into West Berlin and West Germany in their Trabants after the opening of the Berlin Wall in 1989). It was in production without any significant changes for nearly 30 years with 3,096,099 Trabants produced in total”. – Wikipedia

Photo: Enthusiasts weared in uniforms of the former eastern german army trive in a military Trabant car as fans and owners of East German-era Trabant cars gather at the 2011 International Trabantfahrer Treffen (International Trabant Drivers Meeting) on June 26, 2011 in Zwickau, Germany. The Trabant, also known as the Trabi, was among the main cars produced in communist East Germany and built by VEB Sachsenring Automobilwerke in Zwickau for 30 years until 1989. Today the car has cult status for many followers and one company, IndiKar, is even seeking to revive the brand in a modern, electric version. (Photo by Carsten Koall/Getty Images)