askyourdreamsforideas: What I explored this week

I love exploring old abandoned houses and buildings.

It's a sort of hobby for me.In fact,it is one of the things that make my day.

I've had this not-so-usual hobby ever since I was a kid.Whenever I'd spot an abandoned house I'd never seen before,I felt this rush of excitement other kids my age had when they were presented with a new toy.

Why I like exporing abandoned homes?

Well,when I was a kid I had no idea why.I just felt an irresistible urge to do so and so I did it.The fact that this hasn't changed with years means that it serves and fullfils a need of mine.I can only assume it is because I am kind of energy sensitive,I guess.Ever since I was little I could sense other people's and places' energy and draw conclusions about it.It was instinctive and I couldn't give a name to it,but that didn't make it less real.No,I am not a psychic.Or rather,if I am,then everyone else is a psychic too in that respect.Because we all have this ability.It's just that we don't use it and in time it becomes dormant and de-activated.?

So I am really into exploring old,abandoned homes because I love sensing the energy of those places.Just as a good photographer is thrilled by discovering an interesting topic.Did you know that places and objects hold the energetic imprint of previous owners and inhabitants?Going into abandoned houses and sensing the energy of people and events that took place there is just like reading the story of the place.Except in a story the logical part of our brain is activated.Plus,a story can be inaccurate,fake,incomplete,can be interpreted in different ways etc.

By sensing just the energy of a place the logical part of us is bypassed and what remains is pure emotion and feelings which is a much more powerful tool of understanding.Those feelings,if one is trained and willing,can be transformed into a story for the rational part of our brain,though this is rarely necessary or interesting enough for me to do.

In my bucket list I have this wish:

Wish # 650: Explore 50 abandoned houses in my town

And that's exactly what I am going to do,starting from now!

I've had my eye on this one for years,decades even.Partly because it was a sort of historic building,partly because my sister's house is in the same neighborhood.The building on the left-which I didn't explore- was part of a turkish hamam(communal bath) back when Greece was under turkish occupation.The whole place had so much overgrowth in front of it that it was practically like a jungle.But somehow the authorities decided to get rid of that so I finally had access to the separate house on the left.I explored it ten days ago.

A two-storey house,with an inner court yard,in keeping with Turkish tradition that wouldn't allow their women to be seen uncovered by passers by,even in their yard.They's just peep through latticed windows.

The entrance ddoor to the inner yard is unlocked.I hate climbing through windows.Plus,there was no way to break through those windows.This is the view from the inside of the inner yard.It was dark and looked like a prison.I wouldn't want to be spending all day long here,even if I didn't know any better.It gave me a feeling of being trapped.I was raised in a two-storey house with a very big open yard,including my mother's garden always full of flowers,a vegetable garden,hen and pigeon coops,rabbit houses,an orchard and lots of other shady trees.

This is the elevated porch with a flight of chairs leading to the front door of the house.There was a store room under the chairs,which I didn't dare explore.(too dark and I had to somehow crawl in there).

The ground floor was usually men's quarters in turkish houses.There is also a spacious kitchen and WC facilities.

This is the wooden staircase leading upstairs.I loved this,it reminded me of my own house.

When I started climbing those stairs,half way up,I realised it was so rickety and squeaky thatI shouln't risk it upstairs.When exploring old buildings,it is important to trust your gut,even the slightest twinge of fear is a warning sign that should be taken seriously.

Luckily,there was a (broken) path on the left inside that yard,leading to the back of the house.

I loved this staircase leading to the second floor.Probably gave to women direct access to their quarters,without having to cross men's quarters when there were visitors.There was a big fig tree growing all over the place.There were three fig trees in the garden of my childhood,both of the black and the white variety.Every August I would climb up there and eat those honey-tasting fruits until I gave myself a nice stomachache.

So I climbed up that staircase.This fig tree has grown wild,the fruit was not edible.There was also a nice grapevine tree climbing up the wall.

The door giving access to the upstairs rooms was open too.There were several rooms,now probably occupied occasionally by junkies or homeless people.There was also another WC and a locked room that I couldn't get into.

The only thing I liked was this antique piece of furniture,obviously not as old as the house.

Though it was interesting,I really didn't like the vibes of the house.Unlike many others I 've explored,I couldn't wait to get out of there.Still,I am glad I explored it!