Urban explorer on a history mission
Urban explorer Sanivle watches a sunset atop a roof. • Photos Submitted
By Tom Victoria
Sanivle explores Europe’s past through urbex.
The urban explorer said his adventures through countries, mainly Eastern European ones formerly part of the Soviet Union, are a way to visit history.
“I’ve always been a history lover,” Sanivle said.
He said exploring abandoned places brings first-hand knowledge of what a structure or area used to be like.
“In these types of places, you can find documents, things, find out the history and purpose of the place - what used to be here,” Sanivle said. “I think that’s the main reason why I like to do it.”
Sanivle rests outside his tent on a roof.
He adds a cinematic touch to his YouTube videos using graphics akin to a movie about a covert mission and drone shots of him riding a motorcycle to the scene.
“I always try to show everything as interesting as possible,” Sanivle said. “All the ideas come to me during the explorations and I try to show it in my work.”
He started filming videos in his youth.
“I had this hobby even before I started exploring places,” Sanivle said. “Sometimes when I was a kid, I got a camera and started filming various videos at home, outdoors with friends.”
Sanivle parks his motorcycle at a tunnel entrance.
He also enjoyed exploring intriguing spots. Sanivle, now in his 20s, started doing urbex more than seven years ago.
“More and more often, I was able to find something interesting,” he said. “And when you find something interesting, it motivates you to move forward.”
Eventually, Sanivle came to a realization.
“I decided to combine my two most exciting hobbies into one,” he said about exploring and filming.
Sanivle started uploading his urbex videos in 2017. He downplayed his editing skills.
Sanivle watches the view.
“When I film something, I imagine what it will look like on a videotape,” he said. “It all just depends on human creativity and ideas. You may be well-versed in editing software, but you still won’t create something interesting if you have no ideas.”
Sanivle’s journeys often include some physically challenging aspects, including climbing, that don’t faze him.
“I was never afraid of heights,” he said. “Of course, it also came with experience. The more often you do that, the more you learn, understand it. First, you climb the 50-meter tower, then climb higher - it’s all an experience.”
Sanivle said the same principle holds true for traipsing through an abandoned building.
“When you go into the building, you start to know what to expect, what awaits you, etc.,” he said.
Sanivle meditates by the water.
Along with showing what urban explorers term missions, Sanivle also cautions viewers about some of the more risky propositions, such as train surfing, which entails riding on the outside of a moving train.
“The main idea is to not encourage people to do it, mainly to show that it is not easy and dangerous,” he said.
Sanivle said he hopes his content inspires viewers.
“I would like to give my community a message in some way to make each of them do what they love most in life.”
The link to Sanivle’s YouTube channel is: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyI1LIaRk26HFUWGb1BNRdg