31 Haunting Images Of Abandoned Places That Will Give You Goose Bumps

The world is full of wondrous things, some consistently packed with gawking tourist and others almost entirely abandoned.
Here’s a selection of some of those fascinating empty spaces, ghost towns that are rich with history and the stories of the people that used to occupy them.
While most continue to rust and crumble in their neglect, all remain hauntingly beautiful.

1. I.M. Cooling Tower, Belgium
This cooling tower is part of an abandoned power plant station in Monceau-sur-Sambre, Belgium.


2. Kolmanskop, Namibia
Kolmanskop, a small settlement in Namibia, is a ghost town today but was booming in the early 1900s when Germans realized the area was rich with diamonds.

3. Floating Forest, Sydney
The hull of the SS Ayrfield, one of many decommissioned ships in Homebush Bay, harbors an over 100 year-old floating forest.

4. The Maunsell Sea Forts, Engalnd
The Maunsell Sea Forts were constructed to help defend against German air and naval raids during World War II. They were decommissioned in the late 1950s.

5. Last House on Holland Island, USA
This house was the last surviving home of an island community in Chesapeake Bay. It collapsed in 2010.

6. Pripyat, Ukraine
This city was evacuated during a disastrous nuclear power plant accident in 1986. It remains a ghost town to this day.


7. House of the Bulgarian Communist Party, Bulgaria
The former headquarters of the Bulgarian Communist Party were neglected after the fall of the Soviet Union.

8. Nara Dreamland, Japan
This Disneyland-inspired theme park was only open for 45 years, from 1961-2006.

9. Uninhabited Island in Southwest Florida, USA
These domed structures on Cape Romano off the coast of Florida were once a holiday home of oil producer Bob Lee.

10. Abandoned Mill, Italy
When operating, this mill in Sorrento, Italy produced flour.

11. Michigan Central Station, Detroit, USA
Once Detroit’s main passenger depot, several planning mistakes led to this station’s gradual decline.


12. Sunken Yacht, Antarctica
The Mar Sem Fim was a Brazillian yacht that shipwrecked in Maxwell Bay in Ardley Cove in Antarctica. The vessel froze and sunk into the water, but has since been salvaged.

13. The Orpheum Theater, Massachusetts, USA
This New Bedford theater was open from 1912-1959. After its closing, it stored tobacco and currently houses a supermarket.

14. Abandoned Train Station, Abkhazia, Georgia
This train station was abandoned during a war in 1992 and remains isolated because of the regional dispute between Georgia and Russia.

15. Abandoned Wooden Houses, Russia
These hauntingly beautiful structures can be found in an isolated forest in Russia.

16. Underwater City, Shicheng, China
This over 1,300 year-old underwater city was submerged in 1959 during the construction of a hydropower station. Sealed underwater and safe from wind and rain erosion, the city is still in fairly good condition.

17. The City Hall Subway Stop, New York, USA
This metro station sits below City Hall in New York City. It was abandoned because of its lack of adequate traffic and the curved layout that made it unsafe for newer and longer trains.

18. Salto Hotel, Colombia
Now a museum, the Salto Hotel was initially abandoned because of declined interest in the nearby waterfall.

19. Abandoned Subway Tunnel, Kiev, Ukraine
This picture was captured in the underground metro system of Kiev in the Ukraine.

20. Abandoned Submarine Base in Balaklava, Ukraine
While this submarine dock may not be entirely abandoned, it was once one of the Soviet Union’s most secret sites and was said to be able to endure a direct nuclear strike.

21. Abandoned Military Hospital, Beelitz, Germany
Parts of this military hospital, built in the late 1800s, remain in operation, but most have been abandoned.


22. Hashima Island, Japan
This island was once populated due to its access to undersea coal mines. However, interest declined after Japan gradually switched from coal to petroleum.


23. Sanzhi, Taiwan
These houses were initially built to serve as vacation destinations, particularly for US military officers.

24. Abandoned Church in the Snow, Canada
Now abandoned, Saint Mary’s Church in Sorrento, British Columbia remains eerily beautiful.



taken from: http://www.earthporm.com/haunting-images-abandoned-places/

9 Things to Do While You’re Still Single Read

I’ve been single my entire life so far. And while there are difficult days, there are definitely upsides to being single that can be overlooked. There’s no reason to sit around, waiting for the dream guy or girl to come along.
As for me, I’m learning to live life, no matter my relationship status. And whether or not you ever get married, singleness is simply better suited to some activities and bits than marriage is.
After polling my married friends and reflecting over my life, here are the top things to do while you’re still single:

1. Travel As Much As Possible.

You have the time now and no one else’s schedule to work around! Go for it.
I’ve been fortunate enough to fly to visit college friends in Seattle and South Carolina, stand in my friend’s wedding in Texas, go on summer camping trips and spontaneous day road trips, and even live in three different states in the past few years.
Traveling gives you a chance to experience new things, expand your worldview and gives you a sense of pride (the good kind) in your abilities to handle things on your own. Plus, it’s just fun!

2. Save Money.

I’ll admit, this is one I am still working on. Adjusting to marriage can be difficult enough without the added stress of financial burdens. Many of my married friends recommend building up your savings and paying off as many loans as possible now as opposed to later. Also, practice budgeting now (I’m preaching to the choir here)—it’ll be one less thing to adjust to in married life eventually.

3. Enjoy Time With Friends

This one goes for time with both married and single friends. I treasure my relationships with my friends in both categories. Since I only have my schedule to consider right now, setting up times to grab coffee or go on weekend excursions is rather simple. Use this precious time with friends to the fullest—don’t let it slip by.

4. Get Involved With Church

Along with the time with friends, connecting at church is much easier to commit to when you’re single. I’m currently helping out with my church’s children’s ministry and love that I can dedicate as much time to it as I do. I’m usually free for the extracurricular events outside of Sunday mornings, too, so I try to help out with those as often as possible.
It can be easy to feel down about how open your schedule may seem without weekly romantic dates to go on, but it’s so fulfilling to use this season of life to invest in others.

5. Live With Friends

Once you marry your future spouse, that’s the last roommate you’ll ever choose to live with. Kind of crazy to think about, huh? So if you’ve always thought it would be fun to be the Rachel to your friend’s Monica or the Chandler to your friend’s Joey (sorry, I couldn’t resist a Friends TV show reference), what better time than now? I had a roommate who became a friend during my time living in Texas, and now my sister and I share a place, which is great. We both know that we might not be roommates forever — although we do have a backup plan to become crazy cat ladies together if necessary (just kidding…we like dogs better) — so we’re enjoying all the Netflix marathons, meals together, and general silliness we’re having while living together currently.

6. Go For Any Academic Dreams You Have.

When I entered college, my plan was to find a guy there, get engaged, graduate and get married.
Simple, right?
Well, thankfully God had different plans, because what I didn’t realize about myself back then was that I can be very easily distracted from a goal. Had I had a boyfriend, maybe I would have been too preoccupied to fully go after a dream I’d had since I was 8 years old: to graduate with a Bachelor’s degree. I ended up graduating with my BA in four years.
It’s never too late to go back, get another degree, go for a Master’s, etc, but it gets much more difficult once you’re married or thinking about starting a family. So if you have an education dream, now is the time.

7. Go On Mission Trips

This one goes along with the travel point. I am going on my first mission trip as an adult this summer (I’ve previously gone on two when I was still in high school) and I’m very excited about taking such a big step in faith. Yes, it takes a lot of commitment now, but it’s something I wanted to do during my time of singleness because I’ve had several friends, most of whom are married with young kids, who tell me they’d love to go on one too but it’s not the right time in life for them currently. For me, it is, and it’s something I don’t want to waste.

8. Establish Routines For Whatever You’re Passionate About.

If you have something you’ve always wanted to pursue, be it a new hobby, sport, dream, so on, work toward it now. Don’t let it be that mystical thing that you’ll get around to “eventually.” Sure, you’re busy, but you still have more free time now than you will later in life, so be brave and try something new!

9. Spend time with God

This one may seem obvious, but it’s interesting how easily it can be overlooked, at least in my own life. I have tons of time to do all the things I mentioned above, but most important of all is to spend quality time with my Savior.
Make it a part of your daily life now to read your Bible, pray, journal and go to a Bible study. Don’t forget the One who loves you most of all. It’s a great, important thing to try to accomplish everything listed above, but if we miss this last point, our time without a significant other will have been without a real purpose.
So, go ahead, embrace this thing we call singleness, achieve your goals, and follow God above all. Because life doesn’t start when you’re married—life is happening now.

This article was originally posted at truelovedates.com