Machu Picchu Put onto the Map by Google

From CRIENGLISH.com

In 1911, Yale University[耶鲁大学] history professor Hiram Bingham III found the "Lost City of the Incas[失落的印加城市]," in Machu Picchu[马丘比丘], Peru[秘鲁].

马丘比丘（Machu Picchu），是秘鲁著名的前哥伦布时期印加帝国建于约公元1500年的遗迹，是世界新七大奇迹之一。 马丘比丘在克丘亚语（Quechua）中为“古老的山”之义，也被称作“失落的印加城市”，是保存完好的前哥伦布时期的印加遗迹。

Although locals had been aware of[意识到] the site in the Andes[安第斯山脉], it was Bingham's discovery that made it known to the world[举世闻名].

Now Google Street View[谷歌地图街景] is set to bring every terrace[台阶，阶地; 阳台; 柱廊，门廊] and summit[顶点] of Machu Pichhu to a screen near you.

Google's Daniel Filip, the Engineering Manager of Google Street View, announced the good news.

"Today we are here to capture[捕捉;获取] for the first time to capture a street view imagery of Machu Picchu and publish it on Google maps for the whole world to appreciate[欣赏] and be inspired to come to Machu Picchu and visit."

Back at Google HQ[总部headquarters] in California[加利福尼亚], Deanna Yick, Street View Program Manager for Google Maps demonstrates[示范;展示] the device.

"Everyone I think is familiar at this point with street view imagery and seeing this imagery of the cars from the road. But a lot of people would argue that the most interesting stuff[最有趣的东西] is actually off the beaten path[不为人所知的; 鲜有人涉足的; 去的人不多的; 不落俗套的;] and once you get off the roads that is where the good stuff is. So that is what we are focused on bringing people to some of the most exciting, monumental[不朽的; 纪念碑的; 非常的], historic places[古迹] around the world that they are interested to see and we want to be able to provide that seamless experience[无缝体验] on Google Maps."

The Incas[印加] built Machu Picchu atop[在…顶上] an Andean[安第斯山的] peak[山峰; 最高点] some 24-hundered meters high, with a breathtaking view[令人惊叹的景色] across the inhospitable[不好客的，不友好的; 不适于居住的] abysses[深渊] that surround it.

Some experts believe it was a refuge[避难; 避难所] for one or more Inca rulers[印加的统治者], others say that it was a religious sanctuary[宗教圣地].

In the 1980s, visitors shunned[避开，回避，避免] Peru[秘鲁] because of a raging guerrilla conflict[激烈的游击战争] that ended in 1999.

Its popularity has grown since then and over a century later the site receives an average of 4-thousand visitors a day.

Susana Pabon, General Manager[总经理] for Google in Colombia and Peru, says that to provide information of remote places has always been Google map's main desire.

"Google is constantly[始终; 一直; 重复不断地] working in innovation to be able to go into the most remote and important areas in the world, to be able to create what we call the perfect map, and that is the objective[客观的，实体的; 目标的], to be able to create that perfect map, that is why we are going to areas like Machu Picchu, so people can see just with one click[点一下] any part of the world and have access to[使用; 接近; 可以利用] places like this from their own computers"

UNESCO[United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization联合国教科文组织] inscribed[雕，刻; 题写，题献] the Inca stronghold[要塞; 据点; 根据地] on its World Heritage list[世界自然遗产名录] in 1983, boosting the site's fame and making it eligible for[适宜于；有…的资格的，合格的] international technical support.

The images released Thursday are the latest addition to the diverse[不同的，多种多样的] collection of photos supplementing[增补，补充] Google's widely used digital maps.