Wednesday 31 October 2012

P is for...

Plane

When I was 16 I flew for the very first time. Only for about 20 minutes and I remember my Dad nearly having a fit when I got home and told him (not helped by the fact that my Mum knew sort of...). It wasn't a regular plane though: it was a glider. I can't remember much of that flight, although I do recall thinking it fantastic to see things from above. 

When I was 19 I came back from Pula (current day Croatia) to Amsterdam by plane. A year later Brussels-London, London-Catania (Sicily), Catania-Rome and Rome-Paris. Since then I have flown to Malta, Ireland, Northern Ireland, England, Scotland, Norway and Canada. 

The thing I like most about the whole flying thing is the speed while still on the runway. You might call me a speed-junkie, but driving along a motorway with that kind of speed, would be a severe thrill... And once you get into the air and are able to see the earth from above: magical. It all looks so tiny. In some cases it looks quite rough and tough, in other cases it looks really regimented. The Netherlands look regimented. All the i's are dotted and the t's are crossed. No blade of grass out of place. At least, that's the way it looks from up above!

This is the letter P for ABC Wednesday. Why not join?

Top photo taken in October 2011 from the plane (Houston-Amsterdam) over the Netherlands
Bottom photo taken in October 2011 of the plane I was due to take from Amsterdam to Chicago

8 comments:

  1. Hi Mara! Ik vind vliegen ook leuk! I also like flying! I didn't know that Flevoland is the largest part in the Netherlands growing tulip bulbs. Thanks for the information.
    See you in November(?).

    ReplyDelete
  2. I envy you.. I love flying bt have never reached the cockpit yet !!


    PhenoMenon, ABCW Team
    http://capturedalive.wordpress.com/2012/10/30/predator/

    ReplyDelete
  3. It is magical to see the earth from above! Thanks for sharing your flight stories!

    ReplyDelete
  4. first flight terrified me. I'll have to write about...
    ROG, ABC Wednesday team

    ReplyDelete
  5. I do like flying because it brings me over the ocean, where my relatives are, fast! I don't like the jet-lag that is the result of traveling great distances!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Very interesting post! It must be an eye-opener to see the land in perspective, from that height.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I flew in 1964 to Sicily for the first time and I was 21 ! Brussels - Rome and Rome Catania. This plane had only 6 seats and the pilote flew like a mad, probably he wanted to be home for supper ! I went up and down in my seat and arrived in a little airport where I stood without the address of my hosts ! Today I almost admire myself, lol !

    ReplyDelete
  8. I agree with the thrill. I would love to race a car like that! So would Canada be your longest flight? I'm not sure about being in a glider.

    ReplyDelete

Any weighty (and not so weighty) comments are welcome!