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CONTACT

The best way to contact me is through Instagram or Email.

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shanesunburn@gmail.com

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shanesunburn

Security checks. Checkpoints. Waiting in the yurt. Security checks. Checkpoints. Waiting in the yurt. The Soyuz on a live feed. Russian announcements over the loudspeaker.

Then the rocket launched.

Soyuz, Baikonur Cosmodrome.

And we’ll be back here for the September launch. 🚀 Follow @farawaypoints for the trip!

#BaikonurCosmodrome #Soyuz #RocketLaunch #Kazakhstan #SpaceHistory
A visit to the Museum of the History of Baikonur. A visit to the Museum of the History of Baikonur.

A small look at the history of the city and the cosmodrome, from the early Soviet space program and the Cold War to the people, technology and missions that made Baikonur what it is today.

Lots of history packed into one museum.

Baikonur, Kazakhstan.

Join us for the next tour. @farawaypoints 

#BaikonurCosmodrome #SpaceHistory #SovietHistory #ColdWarHistory #SpaceRace
Welcome to Baikonur. A city in the middle of the Welcome to Baikonur.

A city in the middle of the Kazakh steppe, built around one of humanity’s greatest technological ambitions.

Here, the legacy of the space race isn’t confined to a museum.

Yuri Gagarin stands in the centre of the city.

A Soyuz rocket rises above the streets.

And reminders of the Soviet space program are everywhere.

Baikonur is a strange place — part working city, part living piece of space history.

And that’s what makes walking through it so fascinating.

#Baikonur #Kazakhstan #YuriGagarin #Soyuz #SpaceRace
When you hear “Baikonur”, you probably think of ro When you hear “Baikonur”, you probably think of rockets, launch pads and the Soviet space program.

But Baikonur is also a city.

People live here. Families walk through the parks. Children play. And giant monuments to the space age stand alongside everyday life.

For a few minutes, this didn’t feel like a historic spaceport.

It just felt like a normal afternoon in a very unusual city.

Baikonur, Kazakhstan.

#Baikonur #Kazakhstan #SpaceHistory #SovietHistory  #UnusualPlaces
Deep beneath Baikonur is a place most people will Deep beneath Baikonur is a place most people will never see.

An underground command center where some of the most important moments of the Soviet space program were monitored.

On 12 April 1961, Yuri Gagarin was preparing to become the first human in space.

Sergei Korolev — the chief designer behind the mission — was at Baikonur, anxiously watching the preparations.

Today, the cosmodrome still preserves these pieces of history.

Some places don’t look extraordinary.

Until you know what happened there.

#Baikonur #YuriGagarin #SergeiKorolev #darktourism #space
What does a souvenir shop in Baikonur look like? 🚀 What does a souvenir shop in Baikonur look like? 🚀

Not your typical tourist shop.

Here, the shelves are filled with the history of the Soviet space programme — Soyuz and Buran models, cosmonaut memorabilia, mission patches, Gagarin souvenirs, Soviet badges and plenty of Baikonur-themed items.

Some are modern souvenirs. Others look like they belong in a museum.

A small shop in Baikonur, surrounded by the history of one of the most important places in space exploration.

📍 Baikonur, Kazakhstan

#kazakhstan #BaikonurCosmodrome #soviethistory #spacerace #unusualplaces
Energia. One of the most powerful rockets ever fl Energia.

One of the most powerful rockets ever flown.

Built by the Soviet Union to carry enormous payloads into space, Energia launched only twice — in 1987 and 1988.

Its second flight carried Buran, the Soviet space shuttle, which flew into orbit and landed completely by itself.

Then the Soviet Union collapsed.

The programme was abandoned.

Today, the launch complex at Baikonur stands as a reminder of what could have been.

We are going there again. Follow @farawaypoints for details.

📍 Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan

#Baikonur #Energia #ColdWar #DarkTourism #AbandonedPlaces
Where the Space Age began. 🚀 Gagarin’s Start, Bai Where the Space Age began. 🚀

Gagarin’s Start, Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan.

On 12 April 1961, Yuri Gagarin launched from this very site and became the first human to travel into space.

65 years later, I stood at the same launchpad.

Exploring the places most people never think to visit — from abandoned sites and Cold War relics to places with stories that changed history.

Follow @farawaypoints for more unusual places and extraordinary stories.

#Gagarin #BaikonurCosmodrome #Kazakhstan #SpaceRace  #soviethistory
Potala Palace, Tibet 🇨🇳 [June 2026] Every 5 steps Potala Palace, Tibet 🇨🇳 [June 2026]

Every 5 steps, must stop and rest. Fck me! Brutal! 3700m above sea level. 

The original palace was established in the 7th century, but the Potala Palace we see today was largely built from 1645 under the 5th Dalai Lama. It later became the winter residence of the Dalai Lamas and one of the most important centres of Tibetan Buddhism.

Thousands of years of Tibetan history, religion and culture are packed into this place. Niccceeee…
Namtso Lake, Tibet 🇨🇳 [June 2026] The journey fro Namtso Lake, Tibet 🇨🇳 [June 2026]

The journey from Lhasa takes around 4.5 hours each way, crossing Laken La Pass at 5,190m—the highest altitude I’ve ever been. Even taking a few steps left me out of breath. It’s amazing how quickly you realise the air is much thinner up here.

When we finally arrived at Namtso Lake (4,718m), the cold air, deep blue water, snow-capped mountains and endless Tibetan plateau made the long drive completely worth it. It was one of those places where I found myself just standing quietly, taking it all in.

Photos can capture the views, but they can’t capture the feeling of standing here. The thin air, the silence, and the vast landscape made it an experience I’ll remember for a long time. 

#tibet #namtsolake
Xining, China [June 2026] 📍Xining → Lhasa 🇨🇳 🚞 X Xining, China [June 2026]

📍Xining → Lhasa 🇨🇳 🚞

Xining: simple, quiet city. Nothing flashy, but a nice place to slow down before the journey.

Then we boarded the world’s highest railway into Tibet. Apparently, it’s the most beautiful train ride in the world… nahh.. average. 

But I reckon the train ride was necessary for acclimatization. 

Small bucket list ticked.

@mymmomo @jaslynnnnn
Baikonur Cosmodrome Launxh Tour 2026 - September! Baikonur Cosmodrome Launxh Tour 2026 - September!

🚀 Last few seats left.

For those who dream of seeing where humanity first reached space, this is your chance.

Join us on a rare journey to Baikonur Cosmodrome, the birthplace of the space age. From the legendary launch pads used by Yuri Gagarin to the historic Energia-Buran complex and the city built for Soviet space exploration, this is a trip few travellers ever get to experience.

📍 Kazakhstan
🗓️ Limited spaces remaining
👨‍🚀 Small group expedition
🚀 Witness history where rockets still fly today

Swipe through the brochure for the full itinerary and details.

If space, Soviet history, Soviet engineering, and places far beyond the ordinary excite you, send me a message for more information.

@farawaypoints 

#Baikonur #BaikonurCosmodrome #soviet #SpaceTourism #DarkTourism
Baikonur Cosmodrome Soyuz Launch [April 2026] Ano Baikonur Cosmodrome Soyuz Launch [April 2026]

Another top bucket list ticked, and one of the most meaningful journeys I’ve done. After years of reading about the Cold War, Soviet space history, and the early days of space engineering, being here felt like standing inside the pages of those stories.

From the Buran to the rusty Energia, from Gagarin’s Start to the underground control bunker, from the cottages where nights passed before launch to finally witnessing a Soyuz liftoff — Baikonur is not just history. It’s history and the future. 

Before leaving, I visited Gagarin’s gazebo and the Museum of Cosmonautics — quiet spaces that bring everything back to the human side of it all. The people, the risk, the ambition.

This is not a tourist visit, it is witnessing a chapter in humanity. 

——-
I’m going again! Let’s go together! Link in bio!
Soyuz Rocket Launch - Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhs Soyuz Rocket Launch - Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan [April 2026]

This is the world’s first space launch site, deep in Kazakhstan. A place of extreme secrecy, competition, and the Soviet push into space. Witnessing an actual launch here as a Singaporean…. So grateful…

As the countdown reached zero, everything else disappeared. Ground shaking, heart racing… the sheer force of the rocket is indescribable. It’s not possible to be fully prepared. You don’t just watch it… you feel it. 

This is the climax of my trip here. Nothing else can top this now. 

—-
Keen to experience this? I love it so much I’m going again. Join me! Link in bio!
Gagarin’s Start / Korolev’s Underground Command Po Gagarin’s Start / Korolev’s Underground Command Post - Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan [April 2026]

In 1961, almost 66 years ago, Gagarin’s Start became the place where everything changed — the launch pad that sent the first human into space.

This is where Yuri Gagarin lifted off aboard Vostok 1, becoming the first human to leave Earth. There’s no spectacle left in the structure itself — just the quiet presence of something that once carried unimaginable risk and uncertainty.

Not far from here is an underground bunker where Sergei Korolev and his team controlled the launch. Hidden beneath the surface, they watched telemetry, made decisions in real time, and carried the responsibility of sending a human into the unknown. Korolev himself remained unseen to the public, known only as the “Chief Designer.”

This is also the location that the US couldn’t find! 

Above ground, a man went to space. Below ground, others held their breath and made it possible. Both places feel connected — one launch, two worlds, and a moment that redefined what humanity could do.

Legendary! 

Organizing a tour this September! Join me! Link in bio!
Cottages of Gagarin and Korolev - Baikonur Cosmodr Cottages of Gagarin and Korolev - Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan [April 2026]

Inside Baikonur Cosmodrome, there are two small cottages that hold a quiet place in space history — one for Yuri Gagarin (his backup German Titov), and one for Sergei Korolev.

These were the rooms where they spent the night before launch. Simple interiors, nothing elaborate. Just a brief pause before a moment that would change how we look at Earth forever.

Gagarin stayed here before becoming the first human in space. At the time, he was just one of many cosmonauts preparing for the unknown. He was not yet a global name or a symbol. Korolev stayed nearby, the chief engineer of the Soviet space program, known only to a few, carrying the weight of every calculation, every risk, every launch.

They were close to the rocket, but removed from the noise of it. No crowds, no headlines — just preparation, routine, and silence before something immense.

World-changing history beginning in the most unremarkable rooms, just hours before liftoff.

Join me on a trip to Baikonur! Link in bio!
Energia Rocket, Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan [A Energia Rocket, Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan [April 2026]

Standing beside the abandoned Energia rocket was one of those moments that completely messes with your sense of scale. This thing is fcking huge.

Developed by the Soviet Union in the 1980s, Energia was one of the most powerful rockets ever built. At nearly 60 metres tall and capable of carrying around 100 tonnes into low Earth orbit, it was designed for missions far beyond anything the Soviets had launched before.

Energia was created for the Buran space shuttle program, but unlike the American Space Shuttle, the shuttle wasn’t mounted on top — it was attached to the side of the rocket. The design was incredibly ambitious and decades ahead of its time.

The rocket only flew twice.

Its first launch in 1987 carried Polyus, a massive experimental military space platform. The rocket itself performed successfully, but the payload failed to reach orbit because of a software error.

The second launch came in 1988, when Energia successfully sent the Buran shuttle into orbit. Buran completed an unmanned mission and landed automatically — something incredibly impressive for that era. 😱

Then the Soviet Union collapsed.

The program was cancelled, and one of the most powerful rockets ever built quietly became history.

Today, seeing this giant sitting abandoned in Baikonur feels surreal. A reminder of just how far the space race pushed technology, and how quickly entire chapters of history can be left behind. Political pressure at its finest.

Next up: an actual Soyuz launch. Stay tuned!
Buran Space Shuttle, Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhst Buran Space Shuttle, Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan [April 2026]

For me, this is peak Space Race.

Not just because of how massive it is. Not just because it’s abandoned. But because it represents the Soviet Union’s final attempt to match, and maybe even surpass the US in one of the biggest technological rivalries in history.

Hidden deep inside Baikonur, I finally stood in front of the legendary Buran space shuttle. It was built in secrecy, during one of the most intense periods of the Cold War, for a future that never arrived.

At first glance, it looks almost identical to NASA’s Space Shuttle. That wasn’t a coincidence. The Soviet Union developed Buran during the Cold War as a response to the American shuttle program, when both sides were pouring enormous resources into proving who had the superior technology.

But Buran wasn’t simply a copy.

Unlike the American shuttle, Buran launched on the gigantic Energia rocket (next post) and was capable of flying an entire mission automatically. In 1988, it completed its first and only spaceflight without a crew onboard, orbited Earth twice, re-entered the atmosphere, and landed itself on a runway … all autonomously. Even today, that sounds impressive. In 1988, it was almost unbelievable.

The flight lasted just over three hours. And that was it.

A few years later, the Soviet Union collapsed. Funding disappeared, the program was cancelled, and one of the most ambitious spacecraft projects ever built was suddenly abandoned.

Dust everywhere. Peeling paint. Silence.

Yet you’re standing beside a machine that once represented the absolute cutting edge of Soviet engineering.

Next up: Energia! Stay tuned.
Baikonur City, Kazakhstan [April 2026] For years, Baikonur City, Kazakhstan [April 2026]

For years, Baikonur was one of those places I dreamed of visiting. Any fans of the Cold War, Space Race, and Soviet engineering? 

This closed city is where human spaceflight began in 1961, when Yuri Gagarin became the first person to travel into space. Before that historic flight, Gagarin spent time here training and preparing for the mission that would change history.

Hidden deep in the Kazakh steppe, Baikonur was one of the Soviet Union’s most secretive locations. The Americans knew a major space facility existed somewhere in the region, but for years they couldn’t pinpoint its exact location.🤫 

Today, the city is still leased by Russia until 2050, making it one of the most unique places in the world. This place houses the most advance space technology the Soviet Union ever invented! 

What surprised me most was how alive the city feels. Rocket monuments stand on street corners, Soviet mosaics and murals are everywhere, and reminders of the space race are woven into daily life.

During my visit, I explored Gagarin’s Pavilion, Lenin’s statue, Cosmo Park, the giant Soyuz rocket monument, the Sputnik monument, Soviet-era space murals, and the memorial to Belka and Strelka — the first dogs to safely orbit Earth and return alive. More in later posts. 

This was a genuine bucket-list destination for me, and finally standing here felt surreal.

Next up: the Baikonur Cosmodrome itself... and an actual Soyuz launch. 😱

I loved it so much that I’m heading back in September for the Progress rocket launch. Keen to join? Link in bio. Support support 🙏 my first time trying. 👍
Karlag ,Dolinka, Kazakhstan [April 26] Karlag doe Karlag ,Dolinka, Kazakhstan [April 26]

Karlag doesn’t feel like a museum at first. It feels too real.

This was one of the largest labor camp systems in the Soviet Union, deep in the Kazakh steppe, where people were sent and mostly forgotten.

Walking through it, you start with exhibits and documents, but slowly it becomes harder to separate display from reality.

Reconstructed barracks, personal stories, records of imprisonment — all of it builds into something heavier than information. Torture chambers, execution walls…wahhhh… so dark… 

No dramatization here. Just the quiet weight of what happened, and how systematic it all was.

Leaving without many words. 😔😞
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