Email
One is the last surviving wonder of the ancient world, the other could be called a wonder of the modern one. Now Google Street View has come to the pyramids of Giza to allow viewers from anywhere in the world to wander around the most famous site in Egypt.
The internet company has unveiled navigable images of the ancient monument and other Egyptian attractions – including the pyramids of Saqqara, Saladin's citadel, and the ancient city of Abu Mena. Though Google has photographed most roads in Europe and North America since 2007, and other famous sites such as the Taj Mahal in India, it is the first time it has documented any part of Egypt.
It was hard work. Usually, the Street View team captures a street with a camera fixed to car that automatically records its surroundings. But the bumpy terrain near the pyramids allowed no such luxury.
Instead, Google dispatched its troops – known as "trekkers" – on foot, laden with a camera on their backs that looked like an oversized water-cooler.
In the Egyptian summer, which regularly tops 40C, both the trekkers and the cameras struggled. "It was a unique experience for us as well, because the equipment really got tested in the heat," Google Street View's programme manager, Amita Khattri, told Time.
On the plus side, the Google staff had the place mostly to themselves. Since Egypt's 2011 uprising, tourism has suffered as many foreigners stay clear of a country rocked by three years of unrest that nevertheless left most attractions untouched.
Only 9.5 million tourists stayed in Egyptian hotels in 2013, down from 14.7 million four years ago. Total revenues fell by more than half, from £7.7bn to £3.6bn. Ticket sales at ancient sites dropped by 95%.
At the pyramids, footfall has at times this year been a sixth of what it was in 2010. Locals will hope the Street View images entice tourists back to visit the real thing.
• The photograph accompanying this article has been changed because the original image did not depict the Pyramids at Giza.
;