Google's Street View technology is tackling the area around the world's highest peak.
Since its launch in 2007, Street View has documented streets, businesses and landmarks on all five continents with its panoramic photos. It allows the viewer to check out not only most addresses in North America and Europe, but also the world's largest particle accelerator, abandoned islands and evenAntarctica.
The latest attraction for virtual tourists? The trails, villages and monasteries in the shadow of Mount Everest. Google teamed up with local mountaineer Apa Sherpa, who's reached the summit of Everest a record 21 times, to document the region for Street View.
A parking lot for yaks in the market town of Namche Bazaar
Everest may conjure up images of a windswept, remote summit, but the area along the China-Nepal border is home to a thriving community of Sherpa people, who have lived there for centuries. Google Street View's tour of the region doesn't actually cover the summit (though you can get pretty close), focusing instead on the region and its people. In a blog entry, Aga Sherpa said, "My hope is that when people see this imagery online, they'll have a deeper understanding of the region and the Sherpa people that live there."
A statue of Sir Edmund Hillary, the first westerner to climb Everest, at the school named in his honor in Khumjung
This lodge in Thame was built by Apa Sherpa, who helped Google with the project
Virtual tourists can check out a series of guided tours right here. More intrepid e-tourists can check out Street View the old-fashioned way, by going to the Khumbu map and dragging the little yellow Street View icon around.
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