35+ Unbelievable Google Street View Images!
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Note this is a PG-style list, which includes no nudity or violence.
Making this list of the most unbelievable things caught by a Google street view camera has taught us one thing. Namely, that traveling these street view images is like traveling through a record of a particular time. That record is sometimes hilarious, sometimes beautiful, sometimes heartwarming, but always human.
After noticing many fake street view images posing as real when researching this article, we’ve done our due diligence to make sure that each image is from a real Google Street View image.
So sit back and enjoy these moments in time captured by the Google crew.
What is Google Street View?
Launched in 2007, Google Street View is a dedicated effort by Google Maps and Google Earth to provide a panoramic view of the streets, walkways, paths, and waterways worldwide. Google uses special cameras attached to vehicles and even drones to capture shots that live as moments in time.
1 – Jumpsuit golfclub fighting
Location: Oscarsborg Fortress, Norway
What can we even say about this one?! While it’s likely staged for Google’s benefit, our question is why? It appears to be two people in red jumpsuits doing battle on the ground of Oscarsborg Fortress in Norway. What is this style of fighting, you ask? Who knows! And why are they fighting? There are so many questions regarding this one. We couldn’t find any answers in our research, so please feel free to comment below if you know the story behind this shot.
2 – Pigeon folk
Location: Tamagawa Aqueduct, Japan
This one is haunting. We’re hoping this one was staged for the benefit of the Google Street View crew; otherwise, we’re seriously concerned about the folks living near the Tamagawa Aqueduct in Japan. One question we have is: where did they all get the pigeon masks? Was there a pigeon-mask-making party at some point?
3 – Scarecrows in a field
Location: Kainuu, Finland
The Google Street View crew captured this incredible art display by artist Reijo Kela. The piece is called “The Silent People,” and many feel the piece is a response to WWI. The clothing on the figures is changed twice per year.
4 – Diagon Alley (Harry Potter)
Location: Warner Bros. Studio, London, England
Fans of the Harry Potter series will be happy to find out that they can actually take a virtual stroll down the famous Diagon Alley from the books. Google was given private access to capture the magic of the most famous street in the wizarding world. Who knows what you might find there? Legend has it that Lord Voldemort is hiding in one of the windows.
5 – Scuba warriors
Location: Bergen, Norway
Ever wonder what you do with too much time on your hands? Ask these two guys who waited around in lawn chairs, dressed in scuba-gear, for the Google Street View vehicle to drive by. If you look at the map view, you’ll notice that they get up out of their chairs and begin to chase the vehicle with their rakes.
6 – Penny-farthing on the back of a Toyota
Location: British Colombia
Okay…so maybe this one isn’t immediately stunning, but when you think about both the rarity of the penny-farthing and the fact that it’s been mounted to the back of the Toyota here, you begin to wonder about this one. Whoever rides this hipster bicycle actually transports it to different places to ride for sport or show.
What is a penny-farthing?
A penny-farthing is an old-style bicycle, popular in the late 19th-century, that utilizes a big front wheel for a fast, comfortable ride. And, yes, people still ride them—mostly for novelty reasons.
7 – Sunrise on Mt. Fuji
Location: Mt. Fuji, Japan
Not all of the images need to be scary or funny! This one happens to be breathtakingly beautiful. Google did its due diligence to follow the trail that leads up Mt. Fuji to capture this incredible shot of a sunrise. It makes me think that it’s probably not such a bad job to take Google Street View images if you get to explore some locations such as this. This one goes out to anyone who’s ever dreamed of seeing the sunrise on Mt. Fuji—like me!
8 – The parrot holds court
Location: Lancaster, Pennsylvania
What’s the funniest caption you can think of for this parrot on the back of the pickup? Please let us know in the comments below.
Here’s ours: “I pay rent to live in the back of this truck. Joe, here, tells me I’m not too much of a birden.”
You can probably do better.
9 – Woman laying in the back of a car in Russia
We’ve got a theory about this one, and it’s not as sinister as you think. But it does involve robots. The man driving the car is actually a robot named “Henry.” Henry has a chip that controls his mechanics and allows him to drive important clients across the Russian countryside. That chip was dislodged somehow and fell in the back seat. The woman is simply looking for it in the back.
See? It’s not sinister at all!
This image was pulled from the popular free-to-play game GeoGuessr, which asks players to determine a location when dropped randomly in Google Street View.
10 – Goats…lots of goats
Location: Dakar, Africa
This is the largest gathering of goats we’ve ever seen. Goats are valuable livestock in many parts of the world, providing dairy, fiber for clothing, and meat. So it’s not unusual to find them en masse in places like Dakar or other parts of the world. They look quite content there by the side road, taking in the sunshine and nice weather!
11 – Portland cockatoo man
Location: Portland, Oregon
This might be the most Portland Google Street View image you could imagine. A man is out for a casual stroll with his pet cockatoo. We’ve never seen anything like it before, but then again, we’ve never lived in Portland. We’re thinking that the Google Street View vehicle should spend a little more time there.
12 – Kids selling lemonade
Location: New York City, New York
We need to have at least one heartwarming image captured by Google Street View on the list, and this one takes the cake. Remember the days when kids would sell lemonade on the street to earn a little extra cash? It’s a sweet image of what might become a by-gone tradition in the US. We hope they earned some sweet cash this summer with which to have fun!
13 – Pittsburgh performance piece
Location: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
When Google announces that its vehicles will be coming around, people find new and innovative ways to respond. Like this performance piece choreographed by artist Ben Kingsley in Pittsburgh. Kingsley worked with the Google team to create various scenes throughout the city that would be captured by the cameras.
14 – Man walking his dog in Norway
Location: Vestland, Norway
If we were dogs, this is the guy we’d want to be our owner. He must be the kind of guy who brings his dog everywhere—the movies, opera, and fashion shows. We love this photo. This dog looks so content to be relaxing in the Norwegian sunshine on the way to the park.
15 – Nagoro “Scarecrow” village
Location: Nagaro Village, Japan
Artist Tsukimi Ayano has found a hauntingly beautiful way to repopulate her home village of Nagaro. In this street view image, we can see Ayano’s “scarecrows,” which are meant to represent all of her neighbors who have either moved away from her village of 30 people or died. She repopulates the village and creates a haunting portrait of the plight of many villages, where children favor life in the city and leave.
16 – Crossing the road in Russia
Location: Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, Russia
It’s hard to say what’s happening here. We have a theory; however, that might not be the first thing you’d think. We suspect that the woman being held up while crossing the street was actually doing some sort of interpretative dance routine, and angry commuters decided to remove her from the middle of the highway. Disagree? (I don’t blame you.) What’s your take on this one?
17 – William Tell in Connecticut
Location: Wallingford, Connecticut
We’re seriously hoping that no one was harmed in this photo. A man appears to be shooting an arrow at a can placed on another man’s head. Please do not try anything like this the next time Google is in your neighborhood. A simple smile and a wave would be nice.
18 – Bear fishing in lake
Location: Kurile Lake, Russia
Ever since Google started using drones to capture views of out-of-the-way places like here at Kurile Lake, we’ve been seeing more wildlife appearing in the photos. This is a stunning portrait of a bear having a fish snack and enjoying the water.
19 – Toilet-papered house
Location: Font du Lac, Wisconsin
We didn’t think that toilet-papering a house was still something that kids did! We thought that, by now, kids would have found more innovative ways to prank a grumpy neighbor. It looks like we were wrong! And Google’s camera proves it. Whoever’s house this is, we’re sorry! Cleanup will be a pain.
20 – Fire in Arkansas
Location: Sherwood, Arkansas
No one was harmed by this fire. Firefighters put out the fire.
Still, it’s scary to see an entire house engulfed in flames in the suburbs of Arkansas. Google street view caught the firefighters rushing to the scene as they drove by. We’re glad that everyone involved was okay, though the house did suffer major damages.
21 – Japanese wedding march
Location: Shimogamo-Jinja Shrine in Kyoto, Japan.
A rare look at a traditional Japanese wedding march occurring near the Shimogamo-Jinja Shrine in Kyoto. We love the beautiful Japanese gate or torii in the background and the parasol that keeps the happy couple cool. Such wonderful moments captured by Google for our benefit.
22 – Street view of street view car
Location: Salta Province, Argentina
What do you get when a street view camera captures another street view camera? That’s right! Confirmation that Google is everywhere. And likely some kind of implosion of the universe. We love the camaraderie of these two vehicles, and we’d love to imagine them giving each other a high-five as they continue capturing the city’s streets.
23 – Dabbing man
Location: Victoria, Australia
Remember dabbing? What’s that? You’re saying that you don’t want to remember dabbing? We’re sorry. We’d love to forget that dabbing was a thing too. But when many of the street images were taken, dabbing was in full swing. This bicyclist, for sure, dabbed his way to fame.
24 – Mysterious white van
Location: Belfast, Ireland
This one is a little eerie. Every year for 5 years, Google captured a white utility van outside of this corner of Belfast. It wasn’t the same van each year, and Google went past on different days. It left us wondering what’s been wrong with “Stevie’s” fruit store on the corner? Bad plumbing? Electrical issues?
Whatever it was, the latest Google image shows that the store closed—and the white van is finally gone. Spooky.
25 – Cherry blossoms in Japan
Location: Maruyama Park in Kyoto, Japan
Another image included for its breathtaking beauty is this lit cherry blossom tree in Kyoto—the city famous for its cherry blossoms. Every year, the city holds the largest cherry blossom festival in the world. We recommend taking a stroll through the entire park using Google street view. The park is simply stunning.
26 – Shovel guitar man
Location: Marseilles, Illinois
We’re not sure what we love more about this image: the man playing the guitar with his shovel; or, his coworker looking on. This one definitely has the feel of a spur-of-the-moment decision by the construction worker with the shovel. His coworker, however, simply stares at his friend in a look that’s part-horror, part-awe.
27 – Downhill grass skiing
Location: Mont Blanc, France
Is it a skier skiing on the grass? You bet. A Google trekker caught this image of a downhill skier riding the green slopes of Mont Blanc. It’s a stunning image; though, the more we look at the image, the dizzier we become.
28 – Horse-drawn carriage on highway
Location: London, England
You’d never get away with holding up traffic like this in New York or Los Angeles. In fact, you’d likely be taking a risk with your life if you tried. But this couple did not mind doing it outside of London. Their ride seems less romantic, given all of the traffic surrounding them. But…hey…that’s just us!
29 – Rockaway Park seagull
Location: Queens, New York
Google street view captured this enormous seagull mid-flight, as it descended to return to (what we can only imagine is his) lunch. It’s one of the coolest images caught by Google street view—both because of the seagull and because it captures the Queens area of New York known as Rockaway quite well.
30 – Landscape painter
Location: The Flower Walk at Kensington Park, London
It’s a portrait of a painter, painting the beauty of Kensington Park’s area known as The Flower Walk. We love this image-within-an-image (as do the onlookers). One of our favorite things about making this article is seeing the way people live in the streets and parks of their lives. Here’s one way.
31 – Dog caught eating bagels
Location: Houston, Texas
This one kind of breaks our heart. It also makes us smile. You can see the guilty look of this dog as he steps away from his found bagel-meal. He looks like he’s probably a sweet dog, and, because we don’t see any leash, might be a homeless dog. We wish him many good bagel dinners in the future and a warm home soon.
32 – Canadian horse brunch
Location: British Colombia, Canada
Would you join this nice-looking horse for a cup of tea and maybe a biscuit outside on a nice day? We would consider it. We’re not sure how the flamingoes figure into the scene, however, particularly as this location is in Canada. The things people will do when they hear about Google driving through their neighborhoods!
33 – Smoke stacks over picturesque farm house
Location: France
Notice anything off about this lovely pastoral scene in France?
Imagine you’re taking a trip through some of the lovely farm-regions of France. The sun is shining. You’re admiring the classical architecture of the homes and barns. But…wait…what’s that? Yup. It’s a factory in the distance releasing plumes of smoke into the air—the same air that holds the water for the crops. Alas! Nothing gold can stay…
34 – Happy kids
Location: Brazil
We love random bursts of pure joy directed at the world! And these kids certainly know how to make their mark in our hearts. As the Google street view car goes by, the kids do exactly what you’d imagine kids would do. They jump up and down for joy, saying, “Hey! Hello! Olá!”
35 – Mongolian man taking bathroom break on side of the road
No judgment! We’ve all been there before. And try to imagine having to drive a truck for countless hours across this desert. The last thing he would have expected is to be capture on camera by a Google Street View vehicle passing him. Lucky for us, we’re left with this funny and oddly-lovely landscape shot.
36 – Lightning in Romania
Location: Romania
This is the only Google street view image of lightning that we could find! And it’s a really good one. We’re actually surprised that we haven’t come across more storms on the street view camera. It must be because the Google cars stay home when the weather gets bad. Lightning storms are common in Romania due to its unique landscape and climate.
37 – Destroyed FedEx truck
Location: Missouri
We can’t confirm the veracity of this story, but apparently, the truck driver went underneath a bridge that was too low for his truck. This poor guy has a lot of explaining to do, we’d imagine. Still, we feel bad for him—particularly if this was his first time on that route.
38 – Futuristic jogging outfits
Location: Ireland
This looks like something out of an old science-fiction film based on how we imagine spacesuits would look. These are the most intense jogging suits we’ve ever seen! We imagine the purpose is to lock in the body heat, but we seriously worry about the safety of these outfits. And can you imagine what it’s like to take these on and off!
