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Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Arabs whining about Google Street View of Jerusalem

Firas Press has an article about Google Street View in Jerusalem, where it claims that the Al Aqsa Mosque is not shown except for some high angles - but the Kotel can be seen. It looks like they are complaining that this is somehow discriminatory. I cannot imagine if the guards at the Moroccan Gate would have allowed Google employees with all that equipment to go up there.

I found this photo from outside the walls of the Old City that shows the Aqsa mosque:

And this from inside the gate which includes the Dome of the Rock:



It looks like Google abandoned the special car to make the photos and an employee walked around the Kotel plaza, but from most angles you can't easily see the Muslim structures that were built to show Islamic supremacy over the holiest Jewish site.


Street Maps is addictive for Jerusalem.

At the moment, at least in the Google Maps version (I didn't check Google Earth,) many of the streets of the Old City are photographed - but they aren't all linked to the satellite maps, so it is easy to get "lost."


Luckily, at least in the Jewish Quarter, there are signs to help you orient yourself!


If I don't blog the rest of the day, it's because I'm virtually walking through Jerusalem.

Someone should overlay a social component so people could get virtual guided tours.