The Gyle Shopping Centre

Posted by , Tuesday, 28th February 2006

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We had so many submissions for the Mall of America we had to post it back in May last year. So here is our revenge in the form of the Google Sightseeing team’s local “shopping centre”, The Gyle. It actually looks kinda cool from above.

the gyle

Thanks Matthew Pettitt

Geneva’s Jet d’Eau

Posted by Alex Turnbull, Tuesday, 28th February 2006

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At the point where Lake Geneva empties into the Rhone River, you can hardly miss the spectacular Jet d’Eau – a 140 metre jet of water, and officially the world’s largest fountain. Two groups of pumps spray an astonishing 500 litres of water per second into the air at 200 km/h – meaning that at any given time there’s about 2,000 litres of water in the air! You can see just how huge it is in this view from Cathedrale St. Pierre on Wikipedia

Yet another ‘world’s largest’! Will they ever end?

Thanks: Allan, Maite Elguero

Kim Il-Sung

Posted by James Turnbull, Monday, 27th February 2006

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North Korea’s former dictator, Kim Il-Sung (Kim Jong-Il’s father) is held in very high esteem, as shown by this absolutely gigantic bronze statue of the “Eternal Leader” who died in 1994.

This ground level photo should give you an idea of the sheer scale of the monument, where couples visit to lay a wreath just before they get married.

Thanks: eRez

Al-Askari

Posted by James Turnbull, Monday, 27th February 2006

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The Al-Askari shrine in Samarra, Iraq was one of the holiest sites for Shia Muslims.

Sadly this distinctive gold dome was destroyed last week by bombers hoping to escalate tension in the area (BBC News Report).

Thanks: Tom & Adam

Bennie The Dinosaur

Posted by James Turnbull, Sunday, 26th February 2006

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Please note that some or all of the objects mentioned in this post are no longer visible on Google Earth or Google Maps.

Bennie was a fifty-foot tall, 15,000 pound brachiosaur with a shady past, who used to watch over the I-680 highway from this vantage point in Benicia, CA.

Before moving here Bennie used to live on the I-80 in Dixon, CA where he was originally installed, although without the necessary permits. In this past life Bennie was also a female dinosaur by the name of Dixie and at that time had a dinosaur egg at her feet. While in both locations Dixie/Bennie promoted cigarette smoking as the property of “Cigarettes Cheaper!”, a now defunct chain of shops.

Dixie became Bennie back in 1998 when the gas station she was standing in front of was sold and the owners wanted their $150,000 dinosaur back. The move happened early in the morning when she was airlifted by helicopter to the company headquarters in Benica. Fossilfreak has some bizarre photos of the event.

With the collapse of the company sometime in 2005 Bennie was dismantled and offered for sale on eBay, although no-one could afford the reserve. Rumour has it that Bennie now lives in the garden of a former employee somewhere in the Suisun area north of Benicia. Maybe we’ll be able to find him again on the next image update?

Thanks: Alexey N. Solofnenko