Festival goers kiss in the “Silent Disco” at the “Music in the Park” stage during the 50th Montreux Jazz Festival, in Montreux, Switzerland, July 9, 2016. (Photo by Anthony Anex/EPA)

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.

Libyan rebel soldiers watch as they fire rockets (background) toward Libyan government troops near front-line positions April 6, 2011 outside of Brega, Libya. Rebel militias fighting against Libyan government loyalist soldiers continued their stand-off in the eastern Libyan desert today, regaining ground toward a key oil port while awaiting further NATO airstrikes in their quest to unseat longtime Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi. (Photo by Chris Hondros/Getty Images)

Members of the public take to the water at Barassie Beach in Troon, on the west coast of Scotland on Boxing Day, December 26, 2020 as Storm Bella brings rain and high winds to the UK. (Photo by Andy Buchanan/AFP Photo)

A woman clatters pans to make noise after calls for protest went out on social media in Yangon on February 3, 2021, as Myanmar's ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi was formally charged on Wednesday two days after she was detained in a military coup. (Photo by AFP Photo/Stringer)

A cat sits underneath lanterns displayed at Tai O fishing village on September 07, 2022 in Hong Kong, China. Hong Kong prepares ahead to celebrate the mid-autumn festival which is an occasion for a children's night out and family gathering with the customs of moon contemplating, a procession of star and moon-shaped lanterns, lion dance, as well as holding parties with moon cakes and fruits. (Photo by Anthony Kwan/Getty Images)

The king penguin in his moulting suit joins his waddle on their way to the water despite not being waterproof yet at Volunteer Point on the Falkland Islands, 2023. (Photo by Judy Rogero/Media Drum Images)

Marine One with US President Joe Biden onboard takes off from the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC, on April 16, 2024. Biden is travelling to Scranton, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Drew Angerer/AFP Photo)