Fran's Backpack - The Fearless Flier's Handbook: Learning to Beat the Fear of Flying with the Experts from the Qantas Clinic

Fran's Backpack brings to you various products on travel, adventure, flying and photography.

They could be books, ebooks, videos, or gear. Check each one out as it's highlighted on the day.

Today's item in the Backpack is The Fearless Flier's Handbook: Learning to Beat the Fear of Flying with the Experts from the Qantas Clinic [Paperback].

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Product Description
As many as one in five people is afraid of flying. For some, the fear is so paralyzing that they have never boarded a plane. For others, flying is a necessary evil-they'll do it because they have to, but it's torture. They white-knuckle their way through the flights they have to take or avoid air travel and miss out on promotions, business opportunities, and the thrill of visiting new places with friends and family. This book provides a sensible, tested alternative, with proven strategies that have helped hundreds of people overcome their fears and head happily skyward.Based on the Australian airline Qantas's world-renowned "Fearless Fliers" course, THE FEARLESS FLIER'S HANDBOOK is filled with soothing facts and step-by-step exercises for turning fear into calm and confidence.

About the Author
Debbie Seaman is a freelance journalist who writes about travel and the creative side of the advertising business. She currently contributes to People, the New York Times travel section, and Advertising Age's Creativity magazine. She first wrote about her recovery in the Fearless Flyers program in an article in the New York Times.

Flyabout around Australia's Coast - Cape Otway Lighthouse, Victoria

On the first day of my flight around Australia's coast, I flew past the Cape Otway Lighthouse, Victoria.

The day was overcast, the cloud base was low and in July it was quite chilly even with the heater on in the plane. I was flying about 1,500 feet (500 metres) above the ocean.

As you can see from the photo the spray from the ocean created a mist effect to the right side of the lighthouse and other buildings.

The lighthouse, built in 1848 not far from Apollo Bay and the Great Ocean Road, overlooks the Southern Ocean and Bass Strait. There was also a telegraph station built there in 1859.





The coast is dramatic and treacherous and the winds fierce. Many ships were wrecked before the lighthouse was built.

Cape Otway was named by the English maritime explorer, Lieutenant James Grant, after his friend Captain Albany Otway.

For more information check out http://www.lightstation.com/
and http://www.parkweb.vic.gov.au/1park_display.cfm?park=86.

Fran's Backpack - Reader's Digest - Great Wonders & Splendors of the World DVD Set

Fran's Backpack brings to you various products on travel, adventure, flying and photography.

They could be books, ebooks, videos, or gear. Check each one out as it's highlighted on the day.

Today's item in the Backpack is Reader's Digest - Great Wonders & Splendors of the World DVD Set.

This set reminds me of my bucket list because I've been to 11 of the places listed but I obviously have to keep going to visit the rest. These DVDs just whet the appetite for more travel.

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Product Description
Explore the world’s greatest creations, from the natural to the man-made, that have left indelible impressions on countless generations with their beauty, scale and style. From Australia’s Great Barrier Reef to China’s Forbidden City, the Great Pyramids of Giza to the Grand Canyon of the United States–travel to the world’s most breathtaking sights, monuments, palaces and natural wonders.

Disc 1: Wonders of Nature - Although nature’s many miracles evoke a sense of wonder, specific examples of magnificence are revealed to us in many different and special ways. The Grand Canyon, The Serengeti, The Sahara Desert, Iguazi Falls, The Amazon River, Ayers Rock, and The Himalayas.

Disc 2: Wonders Sacred & Mysterious - Experience six supreme examples of man’s attempt to honor the mysteries of life by creating monuments of astonishing beauty. Stonehenge, The Great Pyramids, Hagia Sophia, Borobudur, St. Peter’s Basilica, and The Taj Mahal.

Disc 3: Wonders of Man’s Creation - When the urge to build is combined with a vision of beauty, man leaves behind an enduring mark on an ever-changing world. The Colosseum, Machu Picchu, The Great Wall, The Kremlin, Versailles, The Statue of Liberty, The Eiffel Tower, and Mount Rushmore.

Disc 4: Splendors of Nature - Travel the world to experience splendors unknown to past generations. Witness the incomparable beauty of the natural world: Bengal Tigers of Autumn, Snow Monkeys of Winter, The Great Barrier Reef in Spring, Caribou of Summer, and Victoria Falls.

Disc 5: Ancient Splendors - Take a world tour of the wonders, mysteries and achievements wrought by long-ago civilizations. Temples of Egypt, Lost City of the Maya, Acropolis of Ancient Greece, and Angkor Wat.

Disc 6: Imperial Splendors - See rare and beautiful monuments of powerful empires and splendid courts. Ponder the bittersweet reminders of those who once conquered, ruled and flourished. Xanadu, The Forbidden City, Alhambra, Summer Palace, and Neuschwanstein.

Fran's Backpack - Digital SLR Expert: Landscapes: Essential Advice from the Pros

Fran's Backpack brings to you various products on travel, adventure, flying and photography.

They could be books, ebooks, videos, or gear. Check each one out as it's highlighted on the day.

Today's item in the Backpack is Digital SLR Expert: Landscapes: Essential Advice from the Pros [Hardcover].

Even though I'm a photographer I always want to find ways of improving my skills in taking landscape photos. You can never stop learning, no matter what level you are.

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Product Description
The first title in a new photography series presents a comprehensive guide to taking fantastic landscape photographs using the digital SLR.This guide provides subject-specific advice from five leading professional landscape photographers.It features beautifully displayed, breathtaking photography from Darwin Wiggett, David Noton, William Neill, Tom Mackie and Tony Worobiec.Covering both in-camera and photoshop techniques in-depth, "Digital SLR Expert: Landscapes" is as practical as it is stunning.

Flyabout to Rainbow Bridge over Lake Powell, Utah/Arizona

Rainbow Bridge National Monument, Utah, can be reached by boat, on foot or on horseback but my preferred method of viewing is from the air.

I got up very early to go on a scenic flight at 6am while the sun was rising. We took off from Page Airport and headed over Lake Powell and Glen Canyon National Recreational Area. It's better to go flying early in the morning when it's cooler and generally calmer. The light is quite intriguing as well.

Rainbow Bridge is the largest natural bridge in the world at 290 feet tall and 270 feet across (about 90 metres) and is considered sacred by the Navajo Indians.





When viewed from the ground Rainbow Bridge looks as though it's in the open but from the air you can see that it's tucked away amongst the rocks. Zoom in on the photo so you can see the top part of the bridge in the bottom right foreground.

Fortunately there's no visitor centre on the ground to degrade the spirituality of the place.

After my flight I headed back to Wahweap to catch a day cruise which took us over the large expanse of the lake, into some of the canyons, and to Rainbow Bridge itself. It was a short hike from the jetty but on such a hot day a hat, sunscreen and plenty of water were essential.

This is one place to put on your bucket list but see it from both the ground and the air like I did.

For further information check out Rainbow Bridge National Monument and Glen Canyon National Recreational Area.

Fran's Backpack - Fighter Pilot: The Memoirs of Legendary Ace Robin Olds

Fran's Backpack brings to you various products on travel, adventure, flying and photography.

They could be books, ebooks, videos, or gear. Check each one out as it's highlighted on the day.

Today's item in the Backpack is Fighter Pilot: The Memoirs of Legendary Ace Robin Olds [Hardcover].

I've picked this book because it's about war time flying.

My interest in aviation was sparked by reading my cousin John's books about fliers during World War II, not the Vietnam War. It was his collection that inspired me to take up flying later on.

Unfortunately, John never lived to see me become a pilot because he died at age 23 when I was only 3 years old. He flew with the Citizen's Air Force out of Parafield Airport near Adelaide. I also now use this airport sometimes when I fly.

John died in a car accident, not a plane accident. It must run in the family that pilots have car accidents (I've had two which haven't been caused by me) not plane accidents. So flying is safer than driving!

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Product Description
The widely anticipated memoir of legendary ace American fighter pilot, Robin Olds

Robin Olds was a larger-than-life hero with a towering personality. A graduate of West Point and an inductee in the National College Football Hall of Fame for his All-American performance for Army, Olds was one of the toughest college football players at the time. In WWII, Olds quickly became a top fighter pilot and squadron commander by the age of 22—and an ace with 12 aerial victories.
But it was in Vietnam where the man became a legend. He arrived in 1966 to find a dejected group of pilots and motivated them by placing himself on the flight schedule under officers junior to himself, then challenging them to train him properly because he would soon be leading them. Proving he wasn’t a WWII retread, he led the wing with aggressiveness, scoring another four confirmed kills, becoming a rare triple ace.
Olds (who retired a brigadier general and died in 2007) was a unique individual whose personal story is one of the most eagerly anticipated military books of the year.

Positive Police Presence With Those Gorgeous Greys Again

Due to popular demand here's a follow up to "Positive Police Presence on Magnificent Mounts".

Adelaide, the capital of South Australia, is fortunate to have a mounted police unit which happens to be extremely photogenic even when not in parade attire. Here are two more photos for you to enjoy.

The police officers obviously love their job and I'm sure the "gorgeous greys" do too. However, with my wacky sense of humour, I just have to put a different slant on things. The following comments are coming straight from the horse's mouth (so to speak).

"Hey, lady, I know you think I'm adorable but don't touch my mane. I've just had it washed and brushed this morning and you're messing it up!"

"Could you just scratch my neck a little higher please? That's oh so good. I don't suppose you could scratch that itch on my nose as well could you?"