10 Places That You Can’t Stroll Into Because The Government Won’t Just Allow You
By Michael Koh
1. Mezhgorye, Republic of Bashkortostan
Mezhgorye is a closed town. By closed town, they mean that it’s off limits to anyone without permission to enter the city by a government official. That’s right. In Russia, it’s formally called, “closed administrative-territorial formations” and they’re not represented on any maps except on classified ones.
It’s said that the 19,000 inhabitants of Mezhgorye are all doing classified work in the mountain right next to the town. Hmm.
Mezhgorye wasn’t always called Mezhgorye. In fact, it was called Ufa-105 and Beloretsk-16, before changing to its current name after receiving township in 1995.
Check out the map of the city:
[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?t=h&dg=opt&ie=UTF8&ll=54.044171,57.811432&spn=0.039309,0.100079&z=13&output=embed&w=584&h=390]
2. Mount Weather Emergency Operations Center, Virginia
Let’s hope that we never get to see the inside of this place.
Built in the late 50s, this command center is designed to hold the nation’s highest ranking officials in case of a catastrophic natural disaster. It’s considered the last hope for the human race.
[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Mount+Weather+Emergency+Operations+Center&aq=&sll=30.460418,-86.549927&sspn=0.043466,0.081797&t=h&g=Eglin+AFB,+Florida&ie=UTF8&hq=Mount+Weather+Emergency+Operations+Center&ll=39.061782,-77.889633&spn=0.012996,0.02502&z=15&iwloc=A&output=embed&w=584&h=390]
3. Ise Grand Shrine, Japan
Considered the most sacred shrine in all of Japan, no one but the priest or priestess and the member of the Japanese imperial family can enter.
Ise Jingu is in fact a shrine complex composed of a large number of Shinto shrines centered on two main shrines.
[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Ise+Grand+Shrine,+Ise,+Mie+Prefecture,+Japan&aq=0&oq=Ise+Grand+Shrine+&sll=34.461735,136.722984&sspn=0.002599,0.005112&t=h&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Ise+Grand+Shrine,+Ise,+Mie+Prefecture,+Japan&ll=34.461843,136.723051&spn=0.027599,0.050039&z=14&iwloc=A&output=embed&w=584&h=390]
4. St. Mary of Zion, Aksum, Tigray, Ethiopia
Supposedly the place where the Ark of the Covenant lays hidden, this place is off limits for the casual tourist or the daring adventurer.
[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=St.+Mary+of+Zion,+Aksum,+Tigray,+Ethiopia&aq=0&oq=Church+of+Our+Lady+Mary+of+Zion&sll=34.461818,136.723093&sspn=0.010394,0.020449&t=h&g=Ise+Grand+Shrine,+Ise,+Mie+Prefecture,+Japan&ie=UTF8&hq=St.+Mary+of+Zion,+Aksum,+Tigray,+Ethiopia&ll=14.130354,38.719618&spn=0.008115,0.01251&z=16&iwloc=A&output=embed&w=584&h=390]
5. Volkel Air Base, Netherlands
We won’t ever be able to get into military installations, never.
Check out the map — it’s blurred out because they might have nuclear weapons and so, the layout of the air base is classified.
[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?q=51.656637,5.697091&num=1&t=h&ie=UTF8&ll=51.656051,5.697184&spn=0.020767,0.050039&z=14&output=embed&w=584&h=390]
6. Pine Gap, Australia
Pine Gap is the Area 51 of Australia. It’s the most secretive location down under — although it’s been revealed that Pine Gap is a satellite tracking station.
It’s been reported that Pine Gap is indirectly responsible for drone strikes on civilians.
And considering it employs over 1,000 people in a town of 25,000, it runs the economy of Alice Springs.
[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?q=-23.797597,133.737127&num=1&t=h&ie=UTF8&ll=-23.797989,133.745584&spn=0.030628,0.050039&z=14&output=embed&w=584&h=390]
7. Room 39, Pyongyang, North Korea
Getting into North Korea is tough enough — imagine trying to hustle your way into Room 39, where it’s said that $100 bills are counterfeited and illegal drugs including heroin and crystal meth are manufactured.
[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?q=39.027919,125.746243&num=1&t=h&ie=UTF8&ll=39.026652,125.745049&spn=0.026004,0.050039&z=14&output=embed&w=584&h=390]
8. Area 51, Nevada, United States
Infamous for the Roswell Incident, this top-secret military installation has flirted with the imaginations of millions of Americans and people around the world.
Just imagine if they let a small group of people in for an hour-long tour — and then they put you in a cryogenic freezer to bury you and your memories forever.
[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.239263,-115.815063&num=1&t=h&ie=UTF8&ll=37.23887,-115.815039&spn=0.026649,0.050039&z=14&output=embed&w=584&h=390]
9. Archives, Vatican City
Unless you’re the Pope or one of his cardinals, no one is allowed into the archives of the Vatican.
This is where they keep all of the scriptures and the sacred tombs that were used to write the bible. I’ve read that some gospels were left out of the bible.
[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?q=41.902149,12.453838&num=1&t=h&ie=UTF8&ll=41.901574,12.456179&spn=0.024914,0.050039&z=14&output=embed&w=584&h=390]
10. Pripyat, Ukraine
Radiation still permeates this once live-in city. In 1979, Pripyat had over 47,000 individuals living in its borders. Now, there are zero inhabitants — maybe except for its long-dead residents that have come back. As the wildlife reclaims what was theirs, the city crumbles.
You can, however, try to get permission to enter the exclusion zone and into the city itself — with an armed guard, of course.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INAlUGn0RYg&w=584&h=390]
[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=pryp’yat’,+Kyivs’ka+oblast,+Ukraine&aq=&sll=41.90155,12.456189&sspn=0.009734,0.020449&t=h&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Pryp’yat’,+Ivankivs’kyi+district,+Kyivs’ka+oblast,+Ukraine&ll=51.405578,30.056963&spn=0.020881,0.050039&z=14&iwloc=A&output=embed&w=584&h=390]
If you get to see these places, be sure to take pictures and send them to me.