SAN FRAN FROM THE AIR

Here's a nice shot of the San Francisco airport (SFO) after we departed the other day. I'm always amazed at how we find our way around airports as large as these. The worst airport for finding your way around has to be Chicago O'hare (ORD). That place is a nightmare. The easiest airport to fly into? Why, that would have to be St. Maarten (SXM) of course. I can find my way around there blindfolded. ;-)

GOING GREEN

With the big push for our country to "get with the program" of being eco-friendly, or "going green" as is now the politically correct phrase, it's always nice to see some areas that seem to "get it". Here's a shot I took while flying from Los Angeles (LAX), to Houston (IAH) the other day. This area probably has 200 or so wind generators on the hills and valleys and is located near Palm Springs, CA (PSP). We fly over another area in western Texas that has a couple hundred wind generators also. Maybe oil isn't quite the power source it used to be any more. Wouldn't that be nice?

THE GRAND CANYON

A couple of days ago we had the pleasure of having an absolutely gorgeous view of the Grand Canyon from 36,000 feet. It's not often that you get such a nice view of the Grand Canyon since it's usually covered by clouds. Two days in a row we had incredible views.............and here's a shot I took of the sight. We also had a stunning view of "Shiprock" just outside Farmington, NM. Shiprock is an old indian burial ground. Quite majestic, isn't it?

ANOTHER AIRCRAFT BONEYARD

It's always sad to see airplanes sitting while awaiting their fate. Most of these planes will probably be chopped up and made into beer cans or something else. When I went to Roswell, NM, a few years back for my 30th class reunion, I went to the Roswell Industrial Air Center, and saw four of the B727's I used to fly on over in Europe, waiting to be chopped up and dismantled. Interesting how expensive these airplanes are and how we just "dispose" of them when the "government" thinks they've outlived their usefulness. That's one of the nice things about Europe; they don't destroy all their old buildings and actually enjoy having a little "history" exist.

MORE OF SAN FRANCISCO........

Just finished up a grueling four day trip with stops in San Francisco (SFO), Fort Myers (RSW), and Denver (DEN). The last day we started at 0600 in the morning in Denver, and didn't get home to Newark (EWR) until 0100 THE NEXT DAY!!! Ughhhhh! Darn ATC delays!!! Anyways, I took a few nice shots in SFO I thought you might enjoy. One shot is of a "comedian" who I have NO idea who he is, but he must have been famous because when he came and stood next to me, EVERYONE wanted his photo. Even the folks in the Boudin bread making factory stopped what they were doing to come get this guys picture. Who is he??? Also have a great shot of a loon (I think) with beautiful red eyes. Click on the photos to make them larger and you'll see what I mean. Got a chance to visit the little shop that "invented" the fortune cookie. These little morsels are ALL hand made!!! Attached a little video clip so you can see this operation in progress.

BOSTON RAIN

The other day during one of my trips, we ended up taking some pretty lengthy delays due to the weather in the northeast. (Big surprise there.) Here's a shot of one of our planes departing Boston for Houston. It pretty much looked like this all day. So, in addition to being cold, it was rainy too. Uggghhhh! And people pay big bucks to live in weather like this. Give me the sunshine and warmth of Florida ANY DAY!!! Well, off for another five day trip, so I'll update this blog next week around the 15th. Have a great day and thanks for visiting!

NYC SKYLINE

Here's a nice shot I took the other day when a major front was moving through the northeastern part of the USA. That's the NYC skyline in the distance. I wished I'd have been a bit closer as this shot would have made an incredible poster. Oh well, at least I know the shot to look for next time. ;-) Click on the photo to make it larger.

THE GOLDEN GATE

During our tour of San Francisco, we had the opportunity to see the Golden Gate Bridge. What an awesome sight! Here's a couple of shots I took of the famous bridge from different points. Not often you actually get to see this bridge in its entirety since fog is usually wrapped around it. Incredible, isn't it?

SIGHTS FROM SAN FRANCISCO!!!!

Just got back from a trip to San Francisco. My first officer (co-pilot) went to college with a guy named Cory who manages a "cable car" tour company, so my girlfriend and I went on a "sight seeing" adventure from his buddy's tour company. Some of the stuff we saw was pretty neat like Lombard Street (which is billed as the most "crooked" street in the world), some was kind of funny like the anatomically correct "watering robot" in one of the most EXPENSIVE housing areas of San Francisco, and some like the "pet cemetary" which was......well, you'll just have to decide. Hope you like the photos!

KINGFISHER

While enjoying our recent overnight in Antigua (pronounced an.tee.ga), I was lucky enough to get a photo of a beautiful kingfisher. I think this is the first time I've ever seen one in real life. What a beautiful bird!!!!! I'm off to San Francisco, so I'll post more later.