Urban Exploration

Urban Exploration: Zhongshan Bunkers, China

China is massive. It is vast and varied, over a billion people divided between 56 ethnic groups, and between them speaking almost 300 different languages. Above all else, China is unpredictable; a fact to which the following report stands testament. We set out one bright morning in March, in search of a rumoured network of military tunnels buried beneath a city park. We found the tunnels alright... but the expedition soon turned into a surreal odyssey featuring abandoned playgrounds, giant insects, dead puppies and Orwellian security systems. Qingdao Zhongshan Park There are more than 40 parks in China named 'Zhongshan', as well as one city. The name comes from Sun Yat-sen , founding father and first president of the Republic of China. In Chinese, this great political leader is more commonly known as 'Sun Zhongshan'. When I first heard stories about a network of tunnels beneath Qingdao Zhongshan Park, it didn't sound too far fetched; on a previous visit to this city I had explored a series of abandoned military tunnels , dug beneath the nearby Mount Fu by nineteenth century German colonists. The notion of further tunnels, right in the heart of the city, seemed to be a theory worth investigating. Our taxi pulled up on the street outside an old Taoist Temple, and we stepped into the middle of a disturbance of sorts. Two police officers were trying to move a woman sat on the pavement, while another woman heckled them in a raised voice. We sailed past the growing throng of spect...

Urban Exploration: Zhongshan Bunkers, China

Dark Tourism: Old Melbourne Gaol, Australia

Between 1845 and 1924, Melbourne Gaol housed some of Australia’s most notorious criminals – including the outlaw Ned Kelly, and a serial killer believed by some to have been Jack the Ripper. The three-storey museum charts the lives and deaths of both prisoners and staff, with often-morbid exhibitions including the death masks of executed criminals. Meanwhile, many visitors report disembodied voices and strange goings-on around the cellblock, sparking the interest of paranormal investigators. I visited the gaol not just to feed my own fascination with Australia’s history; but also to better understand how a site linked to so much death and suffering, could yet become an enduring landmark of Australia’s ‘Garden City’. The Old Melbourne Gaol Museum Located on Russell Street in what is now the city’s CBD, the construction of Old Melbourne Gaol began in 1839. It opened its doors to convicts in 1845, and, located adjacent to the City Courts and City Police Watch House, Russell Street soon became the heart of Melbourne’s judicial and penal system. The Old Melbourne Gaol Museum is now reckoned to be one of the most-visited tourist attractions in all of Australia. The three storeys of this remaining wing have been opened up to guests, its cells filled with letters and memorabilia, photo archives and death masks. Melbourne’s first gaol was built on a plot of scrubland, northeast of the city. It was known locally as ‘Wintle’s Hotel’, named for the gaoler George ...

Dark Tourism: Old Melbourne Gaol, Australia

Editorial: May

The month of April saw the end of my current travel spree, as I retreated to my Black Sea lair in order to write up some of these recent adventures; while simultaneously saving money for my next trip. This editorial should give you an idea of what you can expect to see appearing on The Bohemian Blog over the next month... as well as sharing the usual round-up of noteworthy links. Link Roundup For your consideration this month: some superb recent photography of Chernobyl, a fascinating infographic about Hong Kong's most notorious slum, Indonesian abandonments and a smattering of communist ghosts. Abandoned Resorts on an Indonesian Island A Couple Vagabonds Kowloon's Walled City of Anarchy Weird Asia News Forgotten Space Shuttles of the Baikonur Cosmodrome Urbex France Chernobyl 2013 Fragglehunter on Flickr The Decline of Old Kashgar Environmental Graffiti Back to Bulgaria I flew back to Turkey just a couple of weeks ago, before taking a coach up and across the border to Bulgaria's Black Sea coast. Here, back in my own apartment, I'm revelling in the relative luxuries of a shower, a washing machine, and having a whole bedroom to myself. It was roughly this time last year that I was setting off for Kiev, on the first leg of my overland journey to China. I have barely stopped to rest since then, and in the last 12 months I've visited Moldova, Ukraine and Russia, Romania twice, China four times, Hong Kong and Singapore, a month in Kazakhstan and three separate trips through Turke...

Editorial: May

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Tin Dog's Chernobyl March 2013 Travelogue

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Tin Dog's Chernobyl March 2013 Travelogue

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Urban Exploration | Don't Forget Your Past, Bulgaria

var addthis_config = {"data_track_addressbar":true}; Of all the posts on this blog, the one that seems to have sparked the most interest was my report on the House-Monument of the Bulgarian Communist Party , located on Mount Buzludzha. I've now had countless emails from people asking for advice on visiting this truly unique site; and I've spoken to at least half a dozen people who were planning a trip to Bulgaria purely to see it for themselves. As reported elsewhere, there have been some recent changes to the Buzludzha monument; most notably, the metal bars that now stand over the entrance. Some sources will tell you that entry to the site is no longer possible... I beg to differ. Here's a report on my latest expedition to Mount Buzludzha - the dense mist creating an otherworldly backdrop for this bizarre monument to a failed regime. House of the Bulgarian Communist Party I don't usually make a habit of giving out location information, for a number of reasons. Firstly, because I think it takes the fun out of things. If it weren't for the hours of online research - usually followed by at least as much time spent locating sites and finding their potential entrances - there would be no point calling this urban exploration . Some missions end in failure... and for me, that's half the thrill of it. The other reason is that by drawing more attention to these places, they will inevitably receive more traffic. The results of this can vary - from an increased density of graffiti, th...

Urban Exploration | Don't Forget Your Past, Bulgaria

Bromborough Power Station - April 2013

A rare venture for myself into Merseyside, the relatively short journey down the East Lancs Road to Liverpool and beyond is not a trip I've made many times in my life. In fact this was my first trip ever under the River Mersey into Birkenhead, Port Sunlight and Bromborough. Although thinking about it I did once take a ferry across the Mersey and they kept playing that bloody song on a loop - I think I've tried to mentally block the memories of that day. On this not so fine day I find myself in the company of fellow explorer Urban Spaceman and the new boy to our crew, the ever wordy Tin Dog. Bromborough Power Station, well what can we say except that sadly there is not very much left other than its got this very lovely control room which reminds me of a 1970s jigsaw I once owned as a kid, Jon Pertwee, Doctor Who. As I say not much left, this is the old switch room for the now demolished power station originally build for the Lever Bros industrial hub in and around the Port Sunlight and Bromborough area of Merseyside. So not very much to look at on the outside...   But once inside, a nice little gem. With a Homer Simpson, oh you don't see it ?    You can almost imagine the scene in the 70's, the big control desk buzzing away and some guy with his feet up between the dials. Bored shitless and chain smoking his head off, with the room filled with the stale smoke from his Benson & Hedges full fat - possibly with a large mug of coffee or perhaps over stewed tea c...

Bromborough Power Station - April 2013

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Urban Exploration | Pyongyang Metro, North Korea

Seventeen stations spread across two lines, with names that translate into triumphant slogans such as "Victory" and "Reunification," "Comrade" and "Red Star". Add to that rumours of a much deeper, extensive network of secret military bases, nuclear bunkers and government transport depots... and you could only be talking about North Korea's Pyongyang Metro . During a recent visit to the DPRK I had the opportunity to ride on the world's most mysterious subway system - and as it turned out, I went further than the usual tour-approved stations, visiting underground facilities rarely glimpsed by foreign eyes. Here's the report. Building the Pyongyang Metro Construction began in 1965 under the guidance of President Kim Il-sung, this first series of stations opening between 1969 and 1972. According to official sources, the Pyongyang Metro incorporated: "over 30,000 square metres of natural marble and 40,000 square metres of granite". At an average depth of 110m, it's the deepest metro system in the world; and there are many indications that the passenger lines (which have a daily ridership guessed at between 3,00,000 and 7,00,000 people) are only a small fraction of a much larger subterranean network. Stations are regularly patrolled by the military, and reportedly link to underground defence complexes - while a series of secret lines are used exclusively by high-ranking government and military officials.[1] The two publicly declared lines of the Pyongyang Metro are known as the Ch...

Urban Exploration | Pyongyang Metro, North Korea

Urban Exploration | Wonderland, China

Somewhere between Beijing and the Great Wall of China, towering over the plains of Hebei Province, there stands a lonely, broken castle. The site was once conceived as a parallel to Disney's great amusement parks; the dream passed however, and now this gothic tower - no more than a crumbling concrete shell - marks the miscarriage of Asia's largest theme park. They call it Wonderland . In Search of Wonderland The tattered remains of Wonderland offer a poignant hint at the cracks in China's economy, and lend credence to analysts' fears of a developing property bubble. Funded by the Thailand-based Reignwood Group, it was intended to become Asia’s largest theme park; covering a total area of 120 acres. However, the park soon fell victim to financial problems. After failed negotiations with local officials and land owners, construction of this amusement park was abandoned in 1998. Despite subsequent attempts to revive the project in 2008, Wonderland remains no more than a skeleton of a dream. I first came across photos of Wonderland Castle in a report by the Washington Post . Digging a little further, I managed to find the castle on Google's satellite maps; its gothic spires casting long shadows across the surrounding fields. I made the trip from Beijing, where I had got chatting to two Australians at a hostel bar. They were both keen to go, and, as chance would have it, one of them had already been looking for a way to visit Wonderland. There are semi-regular trains that conne...

Urban Exploration | Wonderland, China

Old Railway Bridge (B)

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Old Railway Bridge (B)

Lost Trains, Station Raeren (B)

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Lost Trains, Station Raeren (B)

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Lever Castle, Rivington, Lancashire - April 2013

Not sure why I've not visited this place, well I had back around 1977 with my parents, its on the doorstep pretty much. Part of the old Lever Park, owned by Lord Leverhulme, this mini replica of Liverpool Castle was a unfinished project on the estate. Work commenced in only October 1911, but sadly abandoned following the death of Lord Leverhulme. Sitting on the banks of Lower Rivington Reservoir a little away from the main Rivington gardens, Pike and Barns, I'd just never been back despite regular visits walks up to Rivington Pike. Having flown over Lever Castle on a number of occasions of late, a gentle nudge by Judderman prompted a jump into car for a gentle spring walk down the leafy paths to the castle.  Sadly since my last distant visit steps to the upper levels have been removed, on the upside with the driveway closed to traffic the site is a cracking place to let the kids off the leash. The castle does have a few inner rooms and as the kids call them "secret passageways" for a little bit of an explore. Not so much Urbex but a nice little bimble with the kids, with apologies to the couple with the little boy as my daughters choice of clothing seemed to have caused "issues" as she came stumbling out of a dark passage.

Lever Castle, Rivington, Lancashire - April 2013