Friday, March 20, 2009

Street Walking 2009 Style

I've just spent about 2 hrs going along the streets of my home town, Leeds in England.

I stopped outside Daphne's house and although there was a little gray/silver car outside on the road meaning one of the actors was inside doing some office work, there wasn't a car in the driveway and so I moved on.

Later I was in the city centre and noticed many new shops on Briggate (as I hadn't been into town for over 6 months remember) and saw a lot of construction going on along The Headrow. It was a lovely sunny day and everything was so clear and bright.  I then went along Great Wilson Street to have a nostalgic look at the ASDA headquarters where I spent so many years before I retired.

Now I've had enough and am worn out but it's not my legs that are tired......just my fingers.

You see I've been 'playing' with Google Street View as they've added 25 UK cities to their list and now I can sit in my chair and zoom along many of the city streets and even out into the suburbs as if I was sitting on top of a sightseeing tour bus.  Sadly, as I live north of the Leeds Outer Ring Road, my street isn't covered.  I'd have liked to have seen it - if only to be sure I closed the bathroom window last October.  Bit late now I guess.

I love this sort of thing; being able to go virtually where I want.  Virtually.  I've not even explored any other cities and there are hundreds out there. And they've even fuzzed out every vehicle licence plate and every human face to protect privacy.  So don't zoom over to Vegas hoping to spot your husband coming out of Caesars Palace when he said he was in Cleveland visiting his gran in hospital. Of course you still should be able to recognise what he was wearing when he left the house so you're not 100% safe there, Frankie boy.  It's Vegas.  Wear a dress.

This is totally forgetting that the photos they've used may be many months or years old. 

Anyway once I've had some supper, I think I'll take a 'walk' along the Champs-Elysees or maybe the Piazza Pio XII and see if I can spot the Pope out on his bike. You never know.

Yellow Pages were just a couple of decades ahead of themselves with their slogan "let your fingers do the walking."  I hope someone thought to copyright it.

4 comments:

Daphne said...

I love this kind of thing! Google Maps has been a tremendous help to me since I often travel to new places for work - even with the satnav, I always look up the route on Google Maps first as the satnav occasionally tries to take you up a footpath. I think this new Street View will be useful - - but also fun! Hurrah for t'interclacker!

Anonymous said...

I'm fascinated by Google Earth, too - though our area isn't well covered either.

'Frankie boy, it's Vegas. Wear a dress!'

BWHAHAHAHA!!

Anonymous said...

Don't you believe that 'Google fuzzes out people's faces' line.

Dave Gorman tweeted yesterday:
Crikey! I've successfully located an image of myself on Google Map's new street view. http://bit.ly/GSCbL

Jan said...

Funnily enough, my hubby Mick was doing exactly the same thing yesterday, only in Bradford.

Most Recent Awards

Most Recent Awards