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Until now, Google Street View never allowed anyone to see outside America.  Thankfully, this year's Tour de France seems to have provided enough of a reason for other images to be released.

Photos detailing certain parts of France - parts along the bicycle race's route, to be exact - have become available.  They allow for plenty of sightseeing, as everything from the Eiffel Tower to scenic country roads gets covered.

 Google Street View Hits France

These new images seem to be of considerably higher quality than the usual Street View shots, as well.  Granted, this isn't necessarily a good thing for everybody, but to address privacy concerns, Google's face-blurring software has been set to work on license plates as well as people's heads.

Assuming no river of lawsuits results from the release, other images of France - and all of Europe, for that matter - will hopefully become available in the near future.  Street View cars have been driving around different countries for some time now, so this one small step may be the start of a major move.

Hat tips go to the French blog Zorgloob, which received word straight from Google, and Philipp Lenssen, who took up the matter in English.