Since humans have been in existence they have wanted to continuously explorer and expand their civilizations. From the times of the Neanderthals who followed prey for the survival of their tribes to the ancient empires who sought global domination, humans have been endowed with a natural curiosity about the world around them. Modern man is no exception. The desire of modern man to understand the unknown is proven by the number of governments spending millions of dollars sending satellites and astronauts into outer space.
So what are modern urban city dwellers to do when the natural curiosity becomes too much for them to just sit on their hands and watch the world move on around them? Many have turned to what is called “urban exploration”. Urban exploration is the hobby of exploring sites which are normally off limits or shut down to the general public, usually through less than legal means. Those who practice this hobby, known as urban explorers, do so with full knowledge that if they are caught they can be charged with trespassing by site owners. Sites which urban explorers enter can be anything from abandoned buildings, tunnels, and subways to rooftops of high-rise buildings still in use. The only true reward for these urban explorers is simply the satisfaction that they have been somewhere and seen something that nobody else has. Many will post pictures of their adventures on the Internet for the world to see, to show the world what has been hidden from view. Some explorers will also post tips and notes for sites explaining to other urban explorers the easiest way to gain access to the facilities.
The dangers involved with this hobby go far beyond the legal. There are several physical risks involved as well. Chances are that if a building is condemned or abandoned, it was probably done with good reason, like faulty or weak foundation or various health hazards that were posed to people. Other risks include running into potential criminals in abandoned sites or becoming injured on an exploration and having nobody around to help. If the explorer is injured and calls for emergency help, odds are that after the help is given, charges will shortly be handed out.
Urban exploration is not just an American trend, and to be quite honest, from the pictures posted on the Internet, foreign countries have dozens of far more interesting urban wonders to explorer. Urban explorers have posted pictures on various sites of explorations of abandoned hospitals, breweries, military bases, shipyards and railway networks in countries such as Germany, France, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Italy. Those explorers who choose to share the images of their adventures offer a different perspective of sites visited. It is amazing to think, when seeing these pictures, of the hundreds of thousands of people who must have passed through those sites when they were fully operational. The old adage “if these walls could talk” comes to mind.
Sources:
Urban Exploration Database. Forbidden-Places.
Explorations. Urban Explorers Network.
