By 2004, a lot changed in Athens. A new airport was built, an extended clean and reliable metro network was finished, stadiums popped out the ground and stray dogs were gone out of the blue. Is the Olympics one of the causes of the Economic crisis in Greece? Probably it contributed to it.

The airport and metro lines are still operational and are well maintained. When I visited Ellinikon airport, the old one of Athens, it seemed abandoned but still guarded so getting in was nearly impossible, unfortunately.

The Olympic stadiums seem abandoned too and I did not see anyone around, however, it is still a metro stop (Irini).

While there are still a lot of abandoned houses, they’re an amazing spot for the photographers who love urban exploring. In 1986, the Heidelberg Project in Detroit aimed to refurbish the abandoned houses by turning them into an art exhibition. This public art exhibition turned Heidelberg Street from an unsafe street into a safe, touristy location.

Eastown Theatre used to be a famous theatre in Detroit. Due to illegal activity, especially drug sales and use it closed and reopened a few times. It had been burned down in 2010 but some parts still seemed intact. I heard the building has been demolished now, although not confirmed. I visited all the places with some help from an amazing local guy.

We also stopped at the huge abandoned General Motors Complex. However, we couldn’t stay long because someone showed up and demanded us to leave (probably gang territory).

Here’s some amazing graffiti we found near downtown Detroit.

Something that stereotypes Detroit is the constant steam flow through the manholes which makes the city a bit mystical.

A plane graveyard sitting next to Lake Victoria was once the location of the old airport of Entebbe. Now the location is called Aero beach and has been transformed to a cosy  location allowing guests to sip their drinks around and even in the scrapped aircrafts next to the lake. The graveyard which also boasts a restaurants also has some random statues scattered over the area representing famous figures such as Barack Obama, Nelson Mandela and even IDF (Israeli Defence Forces) commander Yonatan Netanyahu.

The location is fenced so a guard will probably stop you and ask an entrance fee which was 5000 Uganda shillings during my visit. I’ll share you the location on Google Maps.

Besides a few fighter jets, such as the MiG-17 and MiG-21 and a small business jet, you’ll find two passengers flights to roam in and around. The Boeing 707 is almost 47 meters long and is quite interesting to be able to stand on a wing of such an aircraft.
The somewhat smaller passenger aircraft is about 34 meters long and is a Sud Aviation Caravelle.

The Aero Beach is a great place for aviation enthusiasts or anyone who wants to visit a somewhat unusual place when you’re in Entebbe!

Chernobyl, Once a small city in the USSR rose into international fame when the nuclear power plant of Chernobyl was built in the 70s. Shortly after, the name now stands for the largest nuclear accident in mankind in 1986.

The area of Chernobyl and its power plant has since then become a so called “exclusion zone”, where all inhabitants were evacuated shortly after the accident. As of today, only a few people live in the exclusion zone, mainly plant workers who live two weeks inside the contaminated area and then return two weeks home outside the exclusion zone.

It is now possible to visit the exclusion zone if you have a permit. The permit can only be received by booking a tour. But what are the risks in terms of radiation one may ask? If you stick to the rules, almost none. The radiation levels in the exclusion zone is generally lower than in large cities such as Kiev. Additionally, you can bring or rent a Geiger counter if that eases your mind. To put in perspective, you’ll get much more radiation when flying at cruising altitude from cosmic rays from outer space than in Chernobyl with the exception  of a few hotspot zones such as the red forest. Your guide will know the hotspots and will not stay long at these places.

Below you can find a short photo report of my tour.

The checkpoint before entering the exclusion zone:

The abandoned kindergarten in the exclusion zone:

Reactor 4 – note: since November 2016, a new sarcophagus has been built and placed of over the reactor.

Pripyat statue close to the red forest, one of the hotspot zones in terms of radiation:

The school of Pripyat with the abandoned swimming pool and the gym hall:

The abandoned amusement park of Pripyat:

One of the classrooms in Pripyat:

The school hall as a scene from a horror movie:

Music classroom in Pripyat school:

School’s main hall with thousands of gas masks:

One of the interesting places that we visited was the Duga, a massive over-the-horizon radar system built during the Cold War. The Duga, which became famous for overflowing frequencies with repetitive tapping noises on radio and television got nicknamed as the Russian Woodpecker by the West.

When leaving the exclusion zone, we had to pass a radioactive contamination detection device. Luckily, a green light flashed and I was free to go.