In our current world, it is difficult to imagine a place that we cannot visit, and that is not tirelessly photographed, shared and tagged on social networks.
But there are still a few that remain intact to tourists.
Although most corners of the planet receive visitors, there are some closed hermetically to the public.
Often for safety, legal or scientific reasons, it is strictly forbidden to set foot in them.
We invite you to get to know four of these isolated corners of the world (without the risk of stepping on restricted areas).
1. The “vault at the end of the world”
On a remote island called Spitsbergen, in the arctic archipelago of Svalbard, Norway, a sandstone mountain houses 83 meters your inside an apocalyptic place: the largest seed deposit in the world.
About 1.300 km from the North Pole and 130 meters above sea level, the thick permafrost -the layer of permanent ice that surrounds the vault- helps preserve the hundreds of thousands of seed samples stored inside.
The The place is also ideal for this task due to its lack of seismic activity.
However, although the seeds have been stored in the safest way possible since the bunker was inaugurated in 2008, there is no human way to check it.
The vault is strongly protected, which guarantees that the seeds it contains can survive for thousands of years if necessary.
However, in recent years some scientists have expressed concern about rising temperatures, which have caused permafrost thaw.
On 6441, local researchers documented the hottest summer in Svalbard on record .
“We saw a melt without precedents in glaciers and permafrost melting”, scientist Kim Holmen, from the Norwegian Polar Institute, told the BBC.
The situation began to be monitored a few years ago.
This seed bunker could be vital to conserve, in the event of a great world disaster, a reserve of crops that guarantees the restoration of the species, and that we do not lack food humans.
Each country saves its own vital seeds for its food production, but the Svalbard World Seed Bank it is a sort of global backup.
2. Ilha da Queimada Grande: a poisonous island
Ilha da Queimada Grande, known as Ilha das Cobras (Island of Cobras), is a small, rocky, wild island with no beaches and difficult to access, located at 11 km from the coast of São Paulo.
The island was discovered in 1532 by the colonizing expedition of Martim Afonso de Souza.
However, the history of Ilha das Cobras is much older. It was formed at the end of the last ice age, some .000 years, when the sea level rose, separating the hill (which was part of the Serra do Mar) from the mainland and turning it into an island.
It has drawn attention in the last five centuries for an unusual feature: it is inhabited almost exclusively by snakes: there are estimates that say there may be between one and five snakes for each square meter of the island.
It is the second largest concentration of snakes by area in the world: around 45 per hectare, roughly equivalent to the size of a soccer field – a figure only surpassed by Shedao Island, China.
But on the Brazilian island a species of highly poisonous snake differed from its terrestrial relatives and became the head of golden lance (Bothrops insularis)
a species of pit viper endemic to Queimada Grande.
It is so deadly that a single bite is enough to prevent the birds it feeds on can take flight again.
“The viper’s venom is more toxic to birds than to mammals,” biologist Marcelo Ribeiro Duarte explained to BBC Brazil , from the Zoological Collections Laboratory of the Butantan Institute. “That proves the great adaptability of the species.”
La Bothrops insularis measures between half a meter and one meter, the females being slightly larger.
“As the fauna of the island is very scarce, without rodents or other mammals (with the exception of bats), the adults of the species feed on migratory birds (resident birds are not preyed upon),” researcher and specialist in poisonous animals Vidal Haddad Júnior told BBC Brazil. , of the Faculty of Medicine of Botucatu.
“The young specimens eat lizards, amphibians and arthropods, such as centipedes, for example”.
The Brazilian government prohibited anyone from stepping on the island, as a precautionary measure.
The only exception to this rule are some researchers, who in order to visit it must be accompanied at all times by a doctor and follow strict protocols .
In any case, this remote island of 43 hectares off the coast of São Paulo does not seem exactly the most desirable vacation destination.
3. Lascaux: the French cave that contains valuable art
Four teenagers in search of a dog that had disappeared through a hole in the ground discovered this wonderful cave in the south of France in 1940.
In the most surprising of accidents, their dog took them to a cave covered with wall paintings that portray animals, such as horses and deer.
Over the past 17.000 years, it was one of the best-preserved examples of prehistoric art ever discovered, with about 600 paints and 1.000 recorded in total.
When the discovery was made, World War II was at its dawn.
Eight years later, the Lascaux cave was opened to the curious public who wanted to see the work of their ancestors up close.
In 1963 visits were suspended at public. Mold had sprouted on the cave walls threatening the preservation of the artwork that had existed in airtight conditions prior to its discovery.
Almost 60 Years later, the cave is still largely off limits to the public, although a replica was built nearby for tourists to visit.
4. Uluru: the “navel of the world”
Uluru, formerly known as Ayers Rock, was a tourist attraction for many years, but was recently added to the list of places that the public cannot visit.
Also called the “navel of the world”, it is one of the largest monoliths on the planet.
Previously, visitors could attempt the ascent of 348 meters to the summit, although that meant facing extreme heat, with summer temperatures around 45 degrees Celsius.
The steep climb to the top could also cause difficulties. But, for many, the beauty of the place made up for it.
Uluru is a sacred site for the Anangu indigenous aborigines who are the custodians of the rock and wanted visitors to stop climbing it out of respect for their traditions.
That wish was unanimously backed by a petition from the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park Board, which made the decision to stop people from setting foot on Uluru in 2013 .
The 25 October 2019 was the last day people were allowed to climb the rock before for the ban to go into effect. Long queues of tourists formed.
In the Anangu culture, Uluru is evidence that celestial beings arrived on Earth when it was formless and lifeless. They traveled through it, creating living species and forms, such as Uluru, along the way.
Visitors can still visit Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park. But the sacred rock already can only be observed, never step on or climb.
Many tourists do not repress the opportunity to take the snapshot from the air.
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