10 Areas Where the Public Is Not Allowed

Even in a free country with all the freedoms a normal citizen could hope for, there are places that are off-limits to ordinary people for a number of reasons. These places are highly guarded and you could get into trouble if you try to infiltrate them. Let's take a look at the 10 areas where the public is not allowed to enter.

10. Svalbard Global Seed Vault, Norway

At number 10 on our list of 10 areas where the public is not allowed to enter is the Svalbard Global Seed Vault. This safe seed bank is on the island of Spitsbergen off Norway. Environmentalist Cary Fowler and his Advisory Group at the Center for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) founded this bank to protect seeds in case of a global crisis. It all started in 1984 when frozen seeds were stored in an abandoned coal mine. Over the years, 300 different types of seeds have been deposited here. The construction costs of the cellar were covered by the Norwegian government. Today, this project has been successful with the joint efforts of the Norwegian government, the Nordic Genetic Resource Center (NordGen) and the Global Crop Diversity Trust (GCDT).

9. Metro-2, Russia

Metro-2 is number 9 on our list of 10 areas where the public is not allowed to enter. This is the secret underground Metro tunnel in Moscow. According to estimates, the tunnel, codenamed D-6, was built and used during the time of Joseph Stalin. It is believed to run parallel to the Moscow Public Metro, but its length exceeds the Public Metro. Rumor has it that the Metro connects to all important government buildings. However, a few people claimed that no one had ever mentioned its existence, but this place definitely existed. It is not allowed to attempt to search for this place, although in 2004 a group of local travelers claimed to have found its entrance.

8. Jiangsu National Security Education Museum, China

At number 8 on our list of 10 areas where the public is not allowed to enter is the Jiangsu National Security Training Museum. This is a spy museum located in the eastern city of Nanjing province. This museum is off-limits to anyone who is not a Chinese citizen. This museum contains numerous interesting items, from guns that look like lipstick to maps that look like a deck of cards, including Chinese security equipment dating back to 1927. Anyone who does not look Chinese is sent back through the door.

7. Mount Weather Emergency Operations Center, USA

The facility, also known as the High Point Special Facility (HPSF), was built to protect the most important people in the country in the event of a nuclear attack or similar sudden disaster. Naturally, this place is equipped with the highest standards of security and living conditions. According to the Washington Post, many executives were taken to Mount Weather after the September 9 attack. The success of the program largely depends on how quickly news of the attack is received. The mysterious air around this place has caught the imagination of many people. Mount Weather has been used in books, television series, etc. has been described comprehensively.

6. Ise Temple, Japan

Ise Temple is number 6 on our list of 10 areas where the public is not allowed to enter. This temple in the city of Ise is so sacred that people are forbidden to enter and pray. Ise shrine actually consists of more than 123 Shinto shrines. This temple is guarded by a Japanese abbot or priestess from the imperial family. Believed to have been founded in 4 BC, Ise Temple is one of the most sacred and important places in Shintoism. The temple is literally hidden behind hedges, and anyone looking in from the outside can only see the thatched roof of the central structure.

5. Poveglia, Italy

This is a small island located in northern Italy, between Venice and Lido. The island has long been inhabited by humans and has an extensive history of human suffering. Somehow, around 1379, fearing attack, the Poveglians abandoned the place, and the island became truly uninhabited centuries later. Towards 1776, a port was established on this island to control ships, and in 1793, people on ships anchored here caught diseases from patients treated on the island. By the 20th century, the island was turned into an asylum for mental patients, but years later it was completely abandoned. Due to the large number of people who died here, the island was considered cursed and entry to humans was prohibited.

4. Vatican Secret Archives, Vatican City

The Vatican Secret Archives are number 4 on our list of 10 areas where the public is not allowed to enter. The Vatican Secret Archives, located in the Vatican, are said to hide the darkest secrets in the world. Correspondence over the years, papal account books, political documents and many other documents worth a fortune are found in these archives. Very few people have permission to enter these archives, which are the property of the Pope. In case of death or resignation of the Pope, this property passes to the person who comes after him. Since 1881, only a few researchers were allowed to examine old documents each year. In 2012, an exhibition of 100 original documents dating from the 8th century to the 20th century was organized.

3. Lascaux Cave, France

Lascaux Cave is famous for its paintings from the Paleolithic Age. The paintings, estimated to be 17,300 years old, are part of the art of the Upper Paleolithic period. The caves were discovered in 1940 by an 18-year-old young man named Marcel Ravidat. The images often depict large animals whose fossils have been found around the region. The caves were always a forbidden zone for the public. The caves were opened to foreigners in 1995, but were closed again in 1963 due to pollution. Lascaux Cave, which is now on the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage list, is experiencing many problems due to uncontrolled microbial and bacterial formations.

2. Snake Island, Brazil

Snake Island is number 2 on our list of 10 areas where the public is not allowed to enter. Originally known as Queimada Grande Island, the island is located off the coast of São Paulo. This island is home to the deadliest snake on earth, the Golden Lancehead Viper or Pit Viper. Since the species of vipers, the only species on the island, is endangered, normal citizens are prohibited from visiting the island. Only scientists and researchers have permission to enter the area. A lighthouse was established in 1909, and for a long time that lighthouse keeper was the only person living on the island. In 2015, a documentary on Discovery Channel stated that the number of Golden Vipers living on the island was around 4000.

1. Sentinel People, Andaman Island

A group of Indians on this tiny island in the Bay of Bengal are the last known isolated tribe. Rumor has it that the Sentinel People have lived on this island for more than 60,000 years, resisting those who came to the island from outside. Researchers have repeatedly tried to contact this tribe, but the tribe's people responded with sheer violence. The population, which varies between 50 and 400, killed two fishermen who lost their way and went to the island in 2006. In the 2004 tsunami, survey data revealed that the group took to higher ground before the disaster struck, as if they knew what was coming. Farming is completely foreign to them, they are largely hunter-gatherers.