Along with letting you visit places you might never get to in your lifetime, the likes of Google Maps also lets you travel to locations where you actually wouldn't ever be allowed in. Besides the censored satellite images we mentioned above there are actually a load of secretive places that do turn up on Google Earth, including the ancient Forbidden City in Beijing (39.9147, 116.3906). The Imperial Palace that ran from the Ming to Qing dynasties served as the home of emperors and their households for over 500 years, as well as being the ceremonial and political center of Chinese government. And, as the name suggests, for centuries nobody was allowed in - especially not foreigners. Now it's a bit more like a tourist attraction (there's even a Starbucks) but we still get something of an illicit thrill from sneaking a look at a place that's "forbidden".
2. Restricted Areas
A similar thrill we get from poking our noses where we're not supposed to over in the US. For example, did you know that you can straight up go and investigate Area 51 on Google Maps? The Nevada air force base has been the rumoured headquarters for the government's UFO studies for decades, with some even going so far as to suggest they're housing actual aliens in them there hills. You can't see inside the base at 37.2350, 115.8111, but there's still something kind of cool at being able to look at it. For a place that's confirmed to be keeping prisoners against their will, you can shoot over to Guantanamo Bay (19.9000, 75.1500) and maybe you'll find some human rights atrocities of your own? Or you might just see some barbed wire and people in orange jumpsuits. Either way it doesn't feel like you're supposed to be there, and that is exciting.
Tom Baker is the Comics Editor at WhatCulture! He's heard all the Doctor Who jokes, but not many about Randall and Hopkirk. He also blogs at http://communibearsilostate.wordpress.com/
