Thursday, March 18, 2010

The First Time I Saw Paris

Anchorage, Alaska by AirGoodbye Anchorage . . .

Hello Seattle!

Seattle by Air
And ten hours later . . . hello Paris! You recognize this don't you?

The Arc de Triomph by Air Or how about this?

The Eiffel Tower by Air
Go ahead--I dare you to tell me that those aren't WAY cool pictures! We left Charles DeGaulle airport on the outskirts of northern Paris and flew out over the city and looped over the city at 1300 feet.

And then it was clear and cloudless all the way until it got dark somewhere over Iran. Yes, Iran. I have now seen Iran--well, from 5900 feet. First it was the Swiss and Austrian alps . . .

The Alps by Air
Then over past Belgrade and Zagreb and down into the Transylvanian basin. As in VAMPIRES folks. Though from that height even Edward had a hard time sparkling too much.

Transylvanian Basin by Air
And over the Black Sea into Turkey.

Turkey by Air
Past Ankara and down over Iraq. By the time we hit Iran and Pakistan it was getting dark.

Iraq by Air
But still, I must say that I've never spent 10 hours sitting in a chair so delightfully.

Iraq by Air
I sat there, six miles up in the sky, eating couscous and watching the world go by. Literally.

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26 comments:

Rebecca at Toothwhale said...

Wow wow wowwy wow.

Lynn said...

I am literally getting chills with this post! Sooo exciting for you! And what luck to fly with absolutely clear skies.

Robin said...

Ahh yes, Ankara definitely does look better from the air LOL. (I used to work there for months on end. Ick.)

I love hearing about your travels, you're so new and fresh and utterly unjaded, it makes me rethink my own approach to travel. Like that old commercial says, "when is the last time you asked for the window seat?" (Says she who just booked the aisle seat for this summer's trip to the States this afternoon.)

Have a wonderful trip and visit, I can't wait to hear all about it!

Roo said...

How VERY cool! I'm glad the skies were clear. Makes it much more enjoyable to watch the world go by!!!!!

jubilee said...

Such a neat post and pictures. De-Lightful! Thanks for sharing.

Flea said...

So did you see Noah's ark on top of Mt. Ararat?

Shelly Wildman said...

Oh wow! I love reading about people's travels, so this should be fun. Have a great trip!

RoeH said...

Wow...I'd love to be there! Watching the earth at 35,000 feet is a regular high for me. No pun. :)

Jolanthe said...

So very cool!!! :) Love the pictures ~ and the memories you will have!

Unknown said...

Amazing views of Paris - like you own private airplane sight-seeing tour!

Carinne said...

You got much better views of Paris than we did. It was rainy and cloudy when we arrived. On the way back we saw more, but it was further away. Cool that it was clear for you. I'm really excited to hear how you like it all. Wish I was there too......

Serena said...

Oh, great photos! I'm wildly jealous now.

Motherhood For Dummies said...

wow... those werwe some awesome photos! nicely done. Post more when ou get to India :)

branda50 said...

I opened your blog my jaw dropped and wow...Then more pictures and wow again...Have a great time can't wait to see more pictures...

mj said...

Awesome. Man, I want to start doing some serious traveling again...

Hope you have a wonderful trip!

Anonymous said...

Wow, such gorgeous pictures! I am so happy you have a chance to do this!

Trixie

Kathryn said...

I'm. So. Jealous.

Erin said...

What amazing pictures taken from an airplane! I majored in French, and LOVE France, and those pictures took me right back. Thank you for sharing!

Geekwif said...

Gorgeous! I'm a little embarrassed to admit that I had no idea Paris was laid out in that spoke-like fashion. Very cool. The photos over the mountains are fantastic!

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ewe are here said...

Love the pictures from the sky.

And oh how I love Paris ... someday I'll be back there.

Kim N said...

Thank is incredible! Thanks for sharing. It makes me reconsider the idea of taking long flights at night so I can sleep. I hadn't thought of all I would miss. (not that I have ever taken a flight longer than five hours.)

Amber Lynae said...

Those pictures of Paris just make my heart happy. I just posted a picture of Place Charles de Gaulle. It looks much cooler from your aerial view.

Heather said...

What beautiful shots. I am so happy for you. I'd love to travel to Europe someday.

Lori said...

Wow indeed! What an amazing trip!

Stephanie said...

Yes. Cool pictures. Indeed.

I look forward to hearing more about the "sights and sounds" of your trip.

Did you bring your kids along?

stephanie@metropolitanmama.net