If you watched the movie Hachiko or if you’ve ever seen an Akita dog in person, you know how adorable (and loyal!) those dogs can be. If you’re fascinated with that breed or cute dogs in general, you might want to take a tour of Odate, a city in the Akita Prefecture where the dogs hail from. And to make it more exciting, it’s actually two dogs named Ako and Asuka who will take you on a virtual tour through Google Street View.
This project is a partnership between Odate City and Google to bring more cuteness to our lives and also bring attention to the dog-loving city. And don’t worry, no dogs were harmed in this project since the two wore dog-friendly harnesses on their backs where the cameras were attached. Not only do you get a dog’s eye view but you also get to see the backs of their cute, poofy heads. And if you “turn around”, then you get to see their excited, wagging tails as well.
The tour will take you on a snowy mountain trail, an open-air hot spring foot bath, the Roken or Old Dog Shrine, the Akita Dog Museum, and of course, the tourist attraction of Hachiko’s statue at the busy Shibuya Station. If you don’t know who Hachiko is, he is a dog that waited for his master every day at the station, nine years after his owner’s death. It was turned into a tearjerker movie starring Richard Gere.
You can go to Google Street View to take a tour of Odate City with these two adorable dogs. Google Japan is also encouraging people to upload their own Street View videos if they have a 360 degree camera and smartphone.
SOURCE: Google Japan
