The past few years I would say that I have probably flown a lot more than the average person. Usually because of tours to different parts of the country, or even short trips to visit home, I’ve become quite familiar with being on airplanes. And after being on so many flights, I’ve noticed something…during take off, most of the heads in the plane turn towards a window to look out. Young or old, cool guy or geeky girl…when the plane is going up, peoples’ heads turn out. Peering through the little oval of plexiglass to see themselves lift off from the ground, and the buildings and roads get smaller and smaller. They always look. And I believe this is because humans inherently desire to wonder.
Airplanes taking off is a perfect example to prove this. I mean, how often do we get to travel hundreds of miles an hour and actually elevate thousands of feet into the air. Not often. How often do we get to look at skyscrapers like they’re toys, or see cities and mountain ranges like little cracks and bumps on the Earth. Rarely. And so, when we get the opportunity to actually experience these things, we peek, we lean over our seats, we push our face against the glass, just to catch a glimpse. Because we’re curious, because we wonder.
Usually though, as we get older, we suppress this desire to explore, to see new things. Sometimes it’s because we try to act like we’re above it, only kids get excited over a window seat. Other times it’s because pressures and stress from work, family, LIFE bring us down and make us too tired to even open our eyes. I’ve experienced both. But I think the plane is the one most common place, where everyone can’t hide it or fight it… we want to see the view from 30,000 ft. We want to feel free, flying through a cloud. And that’s when our inherent desire to wonder is exposed.
And this is why, despite the fact that I’ve been on countless plane rides…I’ll still opt for a window seat, and I’ll still snap pictures, even though I’ve seen the same views and sunsets so many times. Simply because…dude, c’mon it’s cool!
Leaving the Bay. I see this the most, and I still always find it awesome.
Somewhere over the Pacific.
Los Angeles (not as pretty as SF huh?)
Keep that sense of wonder.
March 29, 2010 at 11:46 am
you sound like my psychology professor…. except you don’t make me feel sleepy… and your not a balding old white guy… yep other than that you are so like him lol
March 19, 2010 at 4:35 am
Things are different up there hah? I work on the plane. Though, never get bored of view from the top
March 16, 2010 at 12:36 am
Have you read Sophie’s World?
You may enjoy it.
March 14, 2010 at 5:48 pm
Hey, Phil! I like reading your blog. You are so good at writing and you have deep thought. Thank you for sharing these beautiful scenery pictures. I agree wat you said. I love taking the window seat too. =]
March 10, 2010 at 7:21 am
I love looking out the window in planes. I also love looking at the city at night. One of my places to drive is the 280/680 south junction to 101. The overpass is high enough that I can see San Jose’s city lights for miles around. Its awesome
March 6, 2010 at 12:01 am
The view of San Francisco looks really nice in your photo. I usually take a trip or two on a plane out of SF each year, but for some reason I always end up on either the wrong side of the plane or the plane takes off on the wrong runway. I never see the city. Nonetheless, any city view from up above is definitely amazing. It makes you wonder how bustling cities with their towering skyscrapers can appear so much like toy cities for children to play with…
March 3, 2010 at 3:48 pm
I stare out the window too. Since I usually leave at night, I see the city lights of SD and I can just make out there the bay is. It’s pretty =]
Nice Photos too!
March 3, 2010 at 11:23 am
Airplanes make me wanna barf. I’ve done it a lot and it’s only gotten worse for me. I do find it easier when I’m with someone who likes flying, but I do tend to fly alone.
While some people love the freedom of flying and the feeling of being above it all, I much prefer to be in the water. I just love being in the ocean/sea/other body of water. I feel at ease and comfortable. I always had dreams that I could breathe under water… someday
March 2, 2010 at 9:21 am
Awesome pictures and thoughts. I have a little fear of flights. I wonder if when I go on an airplane would I be able to stare out of the little windows… (Last time I was on an airplane was when I was 4 yrs old!)
March 2, 2010 at 9:17 am
Very well said Phil… The more I see your works (videos and blog entries) the more I become a fan… keep it up man… thanks for being my new hero and inspiration!
March 1, 2010 at 10:59 pm
growing up is scary and being able to success in life is even more scary just to think about it. I often look at you guys and just wonder how do you guys do it. being able to look down from the plane make me realize how tiny i am in this world and for some reason it’s a comfort to me.
March 1, 2010 at 10:17 am
Awesome thoughts
You forgot fear. Fear of the unknown makes grown-ups stop wondering and exploring.
February 28, 2010 at 2:23 pm
my favorite part is always the taking off and landing… the part where my stomach drops like a roller coaster and then i realise that we’re not on tracks… we’re just floating on air.
February 27, 2010 at 8:11 pm
I have often thought the same thing! Wonder is one of the things that makes life worth living. Of course, there was that one time that I was landing here in NYC, and while the plane was banking I saw my medical school out the window on the opposite side of the plane–a fortuitous glimpse–and I was so surprised and excited that I yelled out loud and scared people for a few rows all around me!
February 27, 2010 at 8:01 pm
“We want to feel free, flying through a cloud”
I definitely agree with you, phil! I find that this same sense of “wanting to feel free” applicable during train rides, too. I live in NY and I, and other commuters heading to the city from Brooklyn, are basically underground for a good half an hour before we cross the Manhattan Bridge. The minute the sunlight or the view of something other than a brick wall dances across the train windows, EVERYONE’S heads turn. Every sleeping head wakes up; every child demands to be picked up; everybody standing turns to look out the window. And even though it’s the same view, same buildings, same bridge… everyone still turns their head- like the airplane passengers.
Thanks for the great post!
.
Definitely articulate and reflective… thanks for reading too
P.S. I personally fight for the window seat too
. It IS cool!
February 27, 2010 at 2:12 pm
This is like your xanga posts phil~ You are really amazing at describing things, great writer
February 27, 2010 at 9:44 am
Yeah I live in the Bay Area and I find that picture awesome as well, especially when you can recognize exactly where it is and from what angle you’re looking, and seeing the 101 turning into and out of a low speed road. Then I looked at google map and was like: dang these map guys are good! I love maps! Did I mention that? haha. Google Earth rocks!
February 27, 2010 at 2:07 am
is it sad that i’ve only been on a plane once ? and i was four months old and i don’t remember it at all ? ]:
February 26, 2010 at 10:56 pm
I love window seats.
I flew back from china to the states a few times and i hate being stuck in t he middle row with 4 people and IN the middle two
i go crazy when theres people in the lavatory for like 10-15minutes doing something…
sleeping on airplanes suck too >.<
February 26, 2010 at 4:56 pm
It must be so neat to fly on an airplane. I have always wanted to. When our band was in the MACY’s Thanksgiving Day Parade back in 2001 we had to take charter buses all the way to NYC from Bainbridge, GA. When my brother went, they took a train (1994). When my sisters went, they got to fly (1995). We were all lucky to get to be in the parade each time the band went, we just took different transit routes. I understand why we couldn’t fly (because 9/11 had just happened). Maybe I will get to fly one day.
Kayeleigh
February 26, 2010 at 3:57 pm
“And I believe this is because humans inherently desire to wonder.”
Thanks.
My father is in his late 60s, and each time that we’ve taken a plane to go on a family vacation, he takes out his camera and snaps away when we take off and land (and pretty much everywhere we go). I love the window seat too, but I’d rather give it to him so he can see the world getting smaller and smaller, knowing that it probably means more to him than it does to me.
February 26, 2010 at 3:50 pm
iget distracted from the wonders of being above by the piercing pains i get in my ears /; sad times
February 26, 2010 at 3:23 pm
Oh, I hate flying in planes. Yet seeing houses and buildings shrink away into toy-like landscapes during take off, and grow again during landing makes it worth the trouble. Window seats are definitely the best – on top of the view you get, you can lean on the wall of the plane instead of awkwardly lying back in the aisle seat, at risk of being booty bumped by people passing by.
February 26, 2010 at 3:14 pm
I love looking out. One day, I hope to make enough money to buy my own small plane. You know, those N series ones where it’s really only big enough for a pilot and co-pilot? Yeah, one of those little planes. How awesome would it be to just be able to fly up there on a whim?
You know what the cool thing is? You only have to be 16 to get a pilot’s license. As long as you’ve clocked enough hours, you’re good to go. Too bad I don’t have the money now, nor do I have the time. But I’ll be starting college next year, and who knows? Maybe I’ll get to try.
I’ve always loved flying. I love that feeling you get when you take off. Where the g force pushes you back into your seat and you strain to look out the window as you rapidly leave the earth behind. I’ve always said, if I could have any super power in the world, it’d be flight.
February 26, 2010 at 3:08 pm
Regardless of how old I get, I don’t think I’ll ever *not* look out the window when a plane takes off. I like seeing random cloud formations in the middle of a flight, and seeing a city grow larger or shrink before my eyes. There’s something about the moment when the wheels of the plane finally leave or touch the ground that makes me happy.
February 26, 2010 at 2:52 pm
I love watching the plane take off if I have a window seat. It’s like a ride or something. I also watch the landing as well. It’s really nice to see all the clouds and everything below. It’s all very calming. However, for comfort purposes I do like aisle seats…I like having more room and I agree with Jordyce, getting off the plane quickly is always nice as well.
February 26, 2010 at 2:50 pm
wow…you’re good at taking pictures!
i love the window seat…it’s just so nice to see everything from the sky and the scenery of the sky is quite nice…especially when the sun is setting or rising! and being to see the mountains is even better ^^
and when flying over cities at night…just feels awesome to look and it and go “wow!”
February 26, 2010 at 1:47 pm
I always try to get the window seat for two reasons:
1. I would rather be caught drooling whilst leaning against the window than on the shoulder of my horrified co-passenger and
2. I do love to look out. I drift away and it looks wierd if I am staring right at the headrest infront of me than out the window…
February 26, 2010 at 11:35 am
The view on an airplane is a lot more pretty when it’s dark outside and you get to see the lights glimmering. ;D
February 26, 2010 at 4:23 am
I’m not gonna lie, I usually prefer sitting in aisle seats. As much as like the view, I like getting off the plane quickly more.
February 25, 2010 at 10:44 pm
Haha, I’m definitely still one of those who always look out the window from the initial take-off till we’re way up in the air. For me, taking off from and returning to Hawaii is, and always will be, the best sight. Seeing the islands up close, then far away as teeny little specks is so amazing; gives me a sense of perspective. I never really thought about it as filling our sense of wonder, but it’s a very inspiring thought. Thanks for the insightful blog, Phil.
February 25, 2010 at 9:35 pm
I like this post. I still have not had that opportunity lol never flown in a plane, but I know I’d be one of those people looking out the window lol
February 25, 2010 at 9:28 pm
I always fight for the window seat too!
First time I ever landed in SF,I was like ” what?wait,we’re landing on water??!!” and then felt the ground…It was amazing!xD
Everytime I land here now I’m so excited!
At take off I focus on the speed of the plane, makes me feels like in a sensation attraction ( if that’s the right word…->thinking about Six flags).Only after I look out the window ^__^.
February 25, 2010 at 8:33 pm
I love this post, very insightful.
Just a note, a little typo hehe
“make us two tired” –> “make us TOO tired”
February 25, 2010 at 8:33 pm
I don’t think there’s anything comparable to the sense of joy to peering out the window when you’re know you’re finally on your descent home after a long trip and you see the countless skyscrapers and bustling city life welcoming you home.
If you ever get a chance, I don’t think anything in the world compares to a shot at Chicago at night especially because the planes tend to orbit around before landing at O’hare and the skyline is absolutely breathtaking.
February 25, 2010 at 5:50 pm
Awesome! I love looking out the windows! It’s sooo cool to see yourself fly!
and btw typo:
“…family, LIFE bring us down and make us TOO tired to even open our eyes. I’ve experienced…”
you wrote “two” instead of “too” lol
February 25, 2010 at 4:28 pm
The window seat is the best. I’m 22 now and I still love the view outside the window. But for me, it’s not the cities that get me –it’s the clouds, the valleys, the plains or the endless vasts of ocean.
Imagine if we could all fly. =)
February 25, 2010 at 3:21 pm
It definitely has been a while since I have flew in a plane. But I do remember every time I always ask for the window seat and always stare out the window when we take off our land. I miss flying on a plane. I wish I could get the chance to fly more often.
February 25, 2010 at 2:48 pm
I agree. Everytime I travel I’m determined to fight for the window seat. I always have to sneak pictures during lift off cause you’re told it’s not allowed to take pictures. I love the pictures you have taken! They’re amazing.
February 25, 2010 at 2:09 pm
If most of my flying wasn’t solo and transatlantic I would always get a window seat too. However, I always turn my head towards the nearest window to watch during take off and landing. Even after all the flying I do I still find it fascinating that such a heavy piece of machinery can manage to sustain flight.
February 25, 2010 at 1:00 pm
Wow Phil nice photos. Oh yeah I’m going to be presenting a blog in class on Wednesday, and I chose to present this one, because of everything you guys stand for. All your films, vlogs, MVs, and even little things of whatever’s on your mind have so much meaning. Especially “We do not stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stopped playing.” Thanks for doing what you’re doing. You guys are role models for a lot of people out there.