(adventurous music) - [Narrator] There are certain landscapes that beg to be viewed from the air.

From a hot air balloon, a helicopter, or plane, and regardless of the mode of transport that ultimately takes your flight of fancy, a grand perspective is guaranteed.

Looking down on marvels and mysteries that rarely fall short of extraordinary.

(dramatic sweeping music) (airplane engine droning) (calm music) The contrasting colors and contours of Australia really lend themselves to a bird's eye view to not one, but a series of scenic flights that showcase the landscape from the air.

To drive across the vast interior of Australia can be a monotonous ordeal.

Dead straight roads that cut through scenery that doesn't seem to change much at all.

But flying above this timeless desert landscape is to experience it to the full, to appreciate its overwhelming dimensions and subtle profiles anew.

There's little chance you'll fall asleep in the passenger seat, taking in the outback on high.

And heaven forbid if you did.

You'd wake up with quite a fright, feeling as if you'd been teleported to another planet entirely.

While some of Australia's most iconic wonders are known to travelers the world over, the vision they have of places like Uluru, are restricted to a postcard view.

Yet this remarkable chunk of sandstone is anything but two-dimensional.

Lying in the very center of the Outback, rising from the desert plains, Uluru quite literally looks like the heart of Australia.

To the Anangu, the traditional owners of the land, Uluru is a deeply spiritual place, created by their ancestors when they traveled across the featureless land, bringing it slowly to life.

They see every feature in the landscape as living proof of not only their ancestors' prior journeys and deeds, but their presence in the land today.

Geologists have a different story to tell about this ancient rock, the coming and going of a vast inland sea, and the movement of tectonic plates beneath the earth, thrusting the horizontal bedrock of Uluru into an upright position.

It's difficult to comprehend this aspect of its creation from the ground, but from the air, it's self-evident.

Those once horizontal layers are now very clearly vertical.

More amazing still is the fact that even from this perspective, you cannot see all of Uluru, just the tip of the gigantic slab of rock that extends a full six kilometers below the earth's surface.

An equally evocative place in Central Australia that makes no sense unless it's viewed from the air is Lake Eyre, a salt pan of preposterous proportions.

Spreading across the horizon, dipping between 12 and 17 meters below sea level, it takes up an area 13 times the size of Singapore.

Once every 10 years or so, when it fairly buckets down in the Outback, most of the rivers in Central Australia drain into Lake Eyre, and it floods.

A spectacle that draws almost as many people as it does pelicans.

Normally found living by the seaside, pelicans flock in their tens of thousands to Lake Eyre, to take advantage of the sudden bounty that springs to life in the desert.

On their journey, they can stay airborne for 24 hours, but once they land, their focus shifts to feeding, feasting on fish that have washed down into the lake in preparation for mating and nesting on isolated islands that rise above the floodwaters.

(pelicans trilling) Chicks need to grow quickly and start their flying lessons when they're barely three months old, as the lake won't support them for long, and they need to be ready to make their 1,500 kilometer journey back to the coast.

(light music) Another great Australian landscape that is totally transformed by rain lies in the top end of the Northern Territory.

Many argue that the wet season, which runs from November to April, is the best time to see the real wonder of Arnhem Land and Kakadu National Park, but heavy rains can force road closures into some areas for months on end.

This is when helicopters really come into their own.

Places that can normally only be reached in the dry are suddenly and spectacularly accessible.

When rivers swell on top of the escarpment that runs through Australia's largest national park, the water has no choice but to spill over the edge, turning normally sedate cascades into thunderous waterfalls.

Twin Falls is Kakadu's most famous waterfall, and in a helicopter, pilots can approach it from as many different directions as they like, maneuvering their machines as if they were stock horses, born to canter through the skies.

Of course, following the flow of the water down onto the floodplains invariably leads to a little impromptu mustering of wild horses, wild geese, and buffalo.

Spreading to the north of Kakadu, and four times its enormous size, Arnhem Land is an extension of this great tropical wilderness.

It's home to a permanent population of 16,000 mainly indigenous Australians, and easily three times as many saltwater crocodiles.

This really is extraordinary country, where mother nature hasn't held back on the vivid colors, creating a mosaic that is both majestic and timeless, especially when viewed from the air.

(airplane engine droning) (dramatic sweeping music) (sprightly music) When Leonardo da Vinci began drawing machines that would allow mere mortals to fly, he looked to the heavens for inspiration, to the natural world on high.

His original sketches would ultimately inspire the development of hang gliders, and modern-day helicopters, the most versatile aircraft of them all.

There are not too many places on earth that cannot be reached by a chopper, for their maneuverability is second to none.

They can fly and land just about anywhere.

New Zealanders have been using helicopters to ferry thrill-seekers into otherwise inaccessible places for decades.

Straight onto glaciers to go heli-hiking, into the hills to go heli-biking, and right up to the crests of snow-clad mountains for the chance to ski downhill on your own.

These are all fairly standard ventures these days in the nation's Southern Alps, but up north, well, they like to fire things up a little, opting to fly from the icy realm of their mountain gods straight into the maw of hell.

White Island sits in the ocean 48 kilometers from the North Island's Bay of Plenty.

It marks the end of the Taupo Volcanic Zone, a chain of volcanoes the Maori people believe were created by the spirit sisters of their ancestors, rushing to the aid of their leader, Ngatoroirangi, who had been caught out in a fearful blizzard.

They traveled beneath land and sea, carrying fire from their tribal homelands.

Everywhere they surfaced on their journey, they left part of their life-saving gift behind, effectively creating all the volcanoes from Ruapehu through to White Island.

70% of White Island's cone is under the sea, so the floor of its crater, which serves as a helipad, is less than 30 meters above sea level.

Flying straight into this sorcerer's cauldron of toxic fumes and acidic gases is not without risk.

But clearly, many feel it's worth it, if only for the chance to witness the raw power of nature first hand.

80% of the earth above and below the sea owes its formation to volcanic action, to eruptions and explosions that have destroyed and created new land.

So in that sense, White Island provides a front row seat to the ongoing drama of earth under construction.

Fumaroles hiss, steam and bubble away, creating exquisite crystal gardens of sulfur.

On most days, the island spews between two and 3,000 tons of toxic gases into the atmosphere.

But the temperature of the gases billowing from these vents varies wildly, from 100 degrees to 450.

The entire landscape is constantly transforming, so visitors never really know what to expect.

Giant vats of boiling water come and go just as regularly as the flights into the crater.

And while rain will dilute the main crater lake, it's never to the point where it's drinkable.

At best, after a really heavy downpour, it becomes as acidic as battery acid.

Around the beginning of the 20th century, attempts were made to mine the sulfur here, but tragedy struck in 1914, when part of the crater wall collapsed, causing a landslide that killed all 10 miners on the site.

What remains of their endeavor serves as an eerie reminder to all who visit White Island of just how unpredictable volcanoes can be.

And how lucky they are in this day and age to have a quick exit pre-planned.

(dramatic sweeping music) (flames whooshing) (light music) Hot air balloons are the oldest form of aviation in the world.

The first successful passenger flight in a balloon took place in 1783.

It was launched by French scientist Jean-Francois Pilatre de Rozier, and given the somewhat experimental nature of the exercise, no humans were allowed on board.

Instead, the first flight carried a duck, rooster and a sheep, aptly named Montauciel, which is French for climb to the sky.

The first manned flight in a balloon made by the Montgolfier Brothers took place just two months later, with Pilatre de Rozier, and his co-pilot, François Laurent d'Arlandes on board.

They rose around 152 meters, and stayed airborne for 25 minutes, drifting from Central Paris to the suburbs, creating quite a milestone in aviation history.

(soft piano music) Different forms of fuel were trialed over the years, from burning old boots, to gas.

(flames whooshing) But in 1960, the propane burner was invented, and the modern era of ballooning began.

As lighter, synthetic materials were developed, ballooning became more and more popular as a sport, and as a way to enhance the experience of visiting certain destinations.

Conditions need to be optimal for balloons to take to the skies.

The weather needs to be clear, and the winds, light.

To avoid the complication of thermals, or rising columns of warm air, most flights take place just on sunrise.

The most striking thing about the view from a balloon is its 360 degree panorama.

You can look out across the land in every direction, and straight down on all the action.

(majestic music) The Serengeti is a world famous safari destination, home to the proud Maasai, who live in small communities, or bomas, throughout the park.

(Maasai tribesmen chanting) Maasai warriors once hunted lions as an important initiation rite, tied into their coming of age.

Now, they are its key protectors.

Lions may well be the king of beasts, but here, they are massively outnumbered, not by thousands, but by millions of wild animals that roam freely across the Savanna, a massive swathe of land the size of Belgium.

Ostriches strut across the sweeping grasslands.

Leopards seek relief from the heat, hiding out in the shadier trees.

And vultures wait patiently wherever there's been a kill to clean up, after the lions have had their fill.

It's clear to see why the Serengeti is one of the most popular destinations in Africa for animal lovers and balloon enthusiasts alike, for there's simply no finer way to take in the sheer breadth of the landscape, to say nothing of its overwhelming serenity.

Balloons afford visitors a mesmerizing vision, especially when the great migration is in full swing.

For millennia, wildebeests have been following the rains to and from Tanzania into neighboring Kenya, travelling 600 kilometers through this massive ecosystem in search of pasture, grazing where and when the grass grows best.

The Maasai believe the wildebeest was created by God, from an assortment of leftover parts: the body of a cow, the horns of a buffalo, the head of a locust, the tail of a lion, and the legs of a goat.

But what they lack in looks they more than make up for in numbers, with 1.3 million taking part in the great migration every year.

Even though they may be spread out over a distance too great to cover in a single balloon flight, seeing groupings of any size from the air is a treat.

Zebras also take part in the migration, and are just as marvelous to see running free, spooked by the sound of hot air as it whooshes up into the balloon to give it more height.

Hippos, wallowing in the cool muddy waters, don't appear to be fussed at all by what's going on overhead.

And the queen of beasts guarding her precious cubs seems totally nonplussed.

While there's no doubt a regular safari vehicle can be positioned in the thick of the action, a balloon ride offers an entirely fresh perspective on the overall landscape, and the animals that roam freely within it.

An equally famous yet entirely different location to experience aloft lies in the Goreme Valley, in Central Turkey.

The natural landscape here is striking, almost lunar.

The result of volcanic activity and centuries of erosion by wind and rain.

Skilled pilots lift off at dawn, rising high enough to give passengers a spectacular bird's eye view before dropping, quite literally, into the thick of Cappadocia's extraordinary urban scenery.

(dramatic music) Here, the chimney-like pillars, hoodoos and pinnacles are honeycombed with ancient caves, some of which have been fashioned into dwellings, storehouses and chapels.

In the early days of Christianity, Cappadocia was a religious refuge, a place where Christians, particularly those fearing persecution from the Romans in the fourth century were able to hide in a labyrinth of tunnels they'd excavated into and beneath the landscape.

Later, when Arab raiding parties arrived on the scene, the Christians burrowed deeper still, eventually forming networks that were so extensive, they functioned as underground towns.

It's extraordinary to drift above this evocative landscape lost in thoughts of the past, captivated, as many travelers have been for centuries, by the region's natural beauty and cultural legacy.

(dramatic sweeping music) (twangy guitar music) Desert landscapes throughout the world are full of mystique, casting a spell with their haunting beauty from every angle or point of view.

But Nazca only gives up its secrets when you take to the skies above.

Approaching by road from Lima, the capital of Peru, the Nazca Desert couldn't present a more foreboding picture.

(dramatic music) Bleached as dry as the bones of civilizations past.

But no matter how macabre the scenery en route, no matter how urgent your sense of misgiving, all fear escapes once you're airborne, replaced with wonder and awe.

(light music) It's impossible to view Peru's famous Nazca Lines from the ground, for the artists that created them some 500 to 2,000 years ago used the whole landscape as their canvas.

How they were able to create these massive, iconic geoglyphs without the benefit of an aerial perspective has confounded archeologists for the better part of a century, as has the purpose they served.

Created by removing around 30 centimeters of soil and rock, the images are thought by some experts to be a kind of calendar, or related in some way to astronomy or cosmology.

(Spanish guitar music) The latest theory behind the straight lines, which are up to 50 kilometers long, is that they may have led to places where rituals were performed to beseech the gods for water to irrigate the Nazcas' crops.

There are 800 ruler-straight furrows in all, and 300 geometric designs.

But the most extraordinary lines the Nazcas drew in the sand resemble plants and animals.

The Spider measures 47 meters.

And the Hummingbird, which is thought to be associated with fertility, is 93 meters long.

An even larger bird-like creature, with a snaking neck and a beak that points directly to the rising sun measures a whopping 300 meters in length.

Whether they were used to understand the stars or pay homage to the Nazcas' gods, there is a general consensus that these mysterious markings were meant to be viewed from the heavens.

(dramatic sweeping music) (majestic music) In 1855, when Scottish explorer David Livingstone first laid eyes on the natural wonder of Mosi-oa-Tunya, the giant waterfall that marks the midway point of Africa's mighty Zambezi River, he declared that no one could imagine their beauty from anything witnessed in England.

He said, "It has never been seen before by European eyes, "but scenes so lovely must have been gazed upon "by angels in their flight."

Ever the loyalist, he named the marvel Victoria Falls, after Victoria, his queen.

Since bringing the waterfall to the attention of the world, millions have stood in awe of its power, copping a drenching from the Smoke that Thunders or viewing it from one of several slightly drier platforms.

At over 1,700 meters wide, the falls straddle the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Boats carry visitors close to the foot of the falls, but the best way to get a true sense of their size is from the heavens above, floating, as Livingstone himself might say, on a wing and a prayer.

When flood waters peak, roughly 625 million liters of water flow over the edge every minute.

That's enough water to fill 250 Olympic swimming pools.

The overall proportions of Victoria Falls are massive, and can really only be appreciated from the air.

They form the largest curtain of water in the world, but since they only plummet 110 meters into the Zambezi River, which at this point is a good 70 meters deep, they are a long way from being the world's tallest.

That honor belongs to Angel Falls, spilling from the lip of a flat topped tepui in the southeast corner of Venezuela.

This great watery wonder was actually discovered from the air by an American aviator named Jimmie Angel.

He, like so many other explorers at the time, was searching for gold, but in 1937, when he crash landed his plane on top of Auyan-Tepui, the largest of the mountains casting a shadow over the Churun River, he found the falls purely by chance.

Three times the height of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Angel Falls cascades 1,000 meters from the lip of the tepui to the Devil's Canyon below.

For such a huge waterfall, you'd expect the river to be enormous.

But on its 36 second journey to the base of Angel Falls, most of the water, which appears to flow in slow-motion, turns to mist, creating its own microclimate which contributes to the growth of lush forests below.

A third great waterfall that really does beg to be seen from the air is North America's famous Niagara.

It's not one, but three separate cascades that straddle the border between the American state of New York and the Canadian province of Ontario.

The source of the Niagara River which feeds the falls is Lake Erie, one of North America's Great Lakes, the largest surface freshwater system on earth.

They contain one fifth of all the free-flowing fresh water on the planet, so the sheer volume of water tumbling over the falls is staggering.

Canada lays claim to the most spectacular of the three falls and from the air, it's clearly well-named: Horseshoe Falls.

It's 670 meters wide, with an average drop of 57 meters, the height of a 13 story building, a number that's always been unlucky for some.

Throughout history, daredevils attempting to successfully negotiate a swift trip over the falls, in a barrel or, in more recent times, a kayak have had a one in four chance of dying.

Whether by intention or accident, over 5,000 people have lost their lives at Niagara, a sobering fact to contemplate from the relative safety of a chopper, but one that doesn't detract from the view nor the sense of awe it inspires.

(dramatic sweeping music) (dramatic music) Waterfalls are not the only natural wonders that appear tailor-made for flying enthusiasts.

Glaciers can be equally compelling from the air.

In fact, in many cases, it's the only way to access these frozen wonders at all.

There are very few roads that penetrate Canada's Kluane National Park, tucked in the southwest corner of the Yukon, for most of this vast wilderness is covered in ice and snow year-round.

(light music) The lower reaches of the park are famous for wildlife, particularly in spring, and since the route most scenic flights take begins by tracking along the Alsek River, it's sure to afford a good sighting of a moose... and, in all likelihood, a fleeting glimpse of a bear, for the area is home to the largest concentration of grizzlies in the world.

Once the Alsek River gives way to the mighty Lowell Glacier, the entire view from the plane ices over, broken only by the appearance of several almost luminescent melt-water lakes.

This massive river of ice is 65 kilometers long, and from toe to source, takes a full 20 minutes to navigate by air.

The scale of this extraordinary environment is difficult to grasp when you're looking down on all that white, but it's actually the largest non-polar ice field in the world, with over 2,000 pristine glaciers on show, hemmed in by the Saint Elias Mountains.

Given just how remote these jagged peaks are, they rarely attract much attention.

Even though the range contains the highest peak in Canada, 5,959 meter Mount Logan, the Rockies invariably steal Saint Elias' thunder.

Sitting wholly within Canada's first national park, Banff is the hub for most travelers seeking to explore the Rocky Mountains by foot or by flight.

(helicopter blades whirring) To say the Rockies are gargantuan is nothing short of an understatement.

In all, they cover a massive 170,000 square kilometers of Canada, an area nine times larger than Kluane National Park and roughly four times the size of Switzerland.

It's easy to see why Canada's early explorers thought the mountains were an impenetrable barrier, blocking access to the Pacific and inhibiting those on the coast from moving east.

But they persevered in their quest to open up the country, building a railway that cut straight through the heart of the Rockies.

It's still a popular way to travel across the mountains, but it simply can't compete with these aerial views, staring huge alpine peaks in the eye.

Rising over 3,600 meters from the Great Divide, which forms the border between Alberta and British Columbia is magnificent Mount Assiniboine, the so-called Matterhorn of the Rockies.

In a helicopter, it's possible to get frighteningly close to the mountain, and if the winds are light, fly right alongside the toe of Gloria Glacier, spilling from a cirque near the foot of its pyramid-shaped summit.

Around 20% of the Canadian Rockies is covered by glaciers, but in winter, the entire landscape is blanketed in snow.

So, not surprisingly, the region is popular with skiers.

Whistler-Blackcomb is the local favorite, boasting a 3,200 hectare playground spread across the two separate mountains.

Both fields hosted key alpine ski events in the Vancouver Winter Olympics, with many competitors accessing the two main areas of the park via the Peak To Peak Gondola, the closest you'll get to flying without actually having to leave the ground.

As one of the longest and definitely highest chairlifts in the world, the scope and scale of this incredible feat of engineering is astounding.

It takes 11 minutes to travel the 4.4 kilometer route from Blackcomb to Whistler, or vice versa, and for just over three kilometers of that distance, the span is unsupported, suspended above a notoriously windy valley.

The highest point above the ground is 436 meters, more than 100 meters higher than the tip of the Eiffel Tower.

There are 28 gondolas, or carriages, dangling from the Peak To Peak cable, each capable of carrying up to 28 people at a time, transporting well over 4,000 visitors per hour in either direction.

Even in summer, when all but the highest mountains have lost their mantle of snow, the views in every direction are amazing.

And even as you dangle like a tea bag over the gaping abyss, it's impossible not to feel in awe of the team of people who conceived, designed and built this chairlift to the sky.

Continuing the grand Canadian tradition of putting the Rockies on show from an entirely different perspective.

(dramatic sweeping music) (light music) Vast, evocative natural landscapes are tailor-made for flight-seeing, but man-made environments can be equally intriguing to explore from the air.

Sydney, on the east coast of Australia, is the nation's most populated city.

And it is resplendent from the sky, particularly on a day when the sun is shining down on her glorious harbor.

Tracking between North and South Head, where the Pacific Ocean enters the harbor provides the best introduction to Sydney and the lay of the land.

And the greater the altitude, the greater the view.

The world's largest natural harbor is actually a drowned river valley that stretches 21 kilometers inland, and its extensive 240 kilometer coastline is dotted with sandy beaches and tranquil bays.

(upbeat music) Flying over the harbor reveals just how central the giant body of water is to the life of the city.

Ferries take commuters to work from their harborside suburbs, yachties make the most of the breeze, and tall ships mimic the adventures of the first fleeters who arrived to colonize Australia.

If only they had been welcomed with such benign weather, they may have felt very differently about their new home.

But alas, in 1788, after an eight month journey from England, their introduction to Australia was anything but idyllic.

The final leg of their voyage was hampered by the wild storms that regularly lash the east coast.

And when convicts and crew finally entered the harbor on January 26, it was declared next to a miracle that some, if not all of the 11 ships in the fleet were not lost.

While the natural splendor of the harbor comes into its own on high, key iconic sights, such as the Sydney Harbor Bridge, which opened in 1932, is best viewed from close range.

At 1,149 meters long, it's still the world's largest steel-arch bridge, held together by no fewer than six million hand-driven rivets.

The two stone pylons on either end of the bridge are purely decorative.

The structure, and all the trains, cars and pedestrians travelling across it are supported by the arch, which rests on four steel pins in the bearings that are little more than four meters long and 36 centimeters in diameter.

More than 150,000 vehicles cross the bridge every day, and to date, more than three million people have climbed it.

The Opera House sits nearby on Bennelong Point, one of the most readily recognized buildings in the world.

More than a million tiles cover the roof.

Its shape is thought to mimic the white sails on boats in the harbor, but in actual fact, architect Jorn Utzon drew his inspiration from the segments in an orange.

The building, although not entirely true to Utzon's original design, was completed in 1973, heralding a new era in architecture, as significant to our time as the pyramids were to the Egyptians.

The scale of the project, the site it was built on, the construction inside and out was, and still is, one of the greatest modern marvels in the world.

The newness of Sydney really lends itself to exploration from the air, pairing the city's fresh and carefree attitude to life with this ultra-modern form of transport.

But helicopters can be an equally fine way to take in ancient cities as well, especially when their not-so-roadworthy reputation precedes them.

(choir vocalizing) All roads may well lead to Rome, but most are heavily potholed, making driving in this otherwise glorious city a nightmare.

From the air, it's patently clear this city wasn't built in a day.

Some of its key monuments date back well over 2,000 years.

Despite the Romans inventing the grid system employed by city planners the world over, the layout of Rome itself is not so neatly ordered.

But it's easy from this perspective to pick out all the major sites in the city among the sea of terracotta-tiled roofs.

The Altar of the Homeland, Altare Della Patria, or the Wedding Cake, as locals often call it, is the largest national monument in Italy.

Built from Botticino marble, the forum honors the unified nation's first king, Vittorio Emanuele the Second.

It also holds the tomb of the unknown Italian soldier killed in World War I. Each portico is crowned by a horse drawn chariot, bearing Nike, the winged goddess of victory who, from this angle, doesn't appear to be wearing sports shoes of any brand.

Sport was, of course, high on the ancient Roman agenda, with the Colosseum a key venue for staging events that drew a colossal crowd.

Well over 50,000 spectators could fit in the bleachers of yesteryear, with all eyes peering down on the central arena.

The masses were not there to watch soccer or baseball, rather, gladiators strutting their stuff, tearing up the turf as they fought, sword and shield, against saber-tooth and retractable claw, or so Hollywood would have us believe.

Most battles waged within this arena were not actually fought against the four legged, and not all gladiators were prisoners of war or slaves.

Some were accomplished warriors who would unleash their brute force on one another in an attempt to win favor and fame.

One can only imagine what the Christians made of such blood lust, coursing through the veins of their city for 650 years.

But if their sensibilities were offended, they had many places they could retreat to, seeking solace in their scriptures.

(classical music) Even today, there are over 900 churches wedged in the heart of the city, but the Pantheon reigns supreme.

This former pagan temple is unmistakable from the air thanks to its giant oculus, or hole in the roof, linking heaven and earth.

Since the seventh century, this almost 2,000 year old monument has been used as a Christian church.

And despite its antiquity, it's still the largest concrete dome in the world.

The oculus looks quite small from the air, but it's actually 8.2 meters across, the Romans' version of a skylight, minus the opaque glass.

When it rains, ancient drains beneath the eye simply carry the water away, allowing services to continue uninterrupted.

Other monuments that have become popular meeting places in this grand, open air museum are the Spanish Steps, and the Fontana de Trevi, the largest and most theatrical of the 2,000 fountains that grace palazzos and piazzas throughout the city.

Although the Trevi was only built in the 18th century, the aqueduct that carries the spring water that feeds it was built in 19 B.C.

Coins are thrown into the fountain every day by visitors, looking for luck and love, a tradition that dates back to the ancient Romans who would throw coins into water for the gods, seeking good fortune on their travels, or safety on their way home.

The smallest country in the world, the Vatican, lies in the heart of this city, on land that's barely one eighth the size of Central Park in New York.

It has its own mint, post office, observatory, and radio station.

But the architectural standout is Saint Peter's Basilica.

Granted, you can't see its lavish interior from the air, but the view over Michelangelo's Dome and across the rooftop line of apostles standing with John the Baptist and Christ the Redeemer will set your spirit soaring.

A fitting end to a flight that inspires even greater reverence from the faithful and a deeper regard for the history and architecture of Rome.

Light years away from this ancient city, sitting loud and proud in the heart of Nevada is Las Vegas, a desert metropolis that's barely a century old.

A city best known for its quirky marriages, quickie divorces, organized crime, and gambling.

40 million visitors a year come to try their luck at the tables or just to gawk in dumbfounded amazement at the excess of excess on the infamous Las Vegas Strip, a 6.8 kilometer drag crammed with casinos and garish resort-style hotels.

Frank Sinatra, who helped transform Las Vegas from a dusty desert town to the very epicenter of American entertainment said, "There ain't no house in Las Vegas like the penthouse."

But even the views from the best suites in town pale when compared to this.

(up-tempo band music) The neon night flight over the Vegas Strip is 15 minutes of fabulous.

Peering down on 11 of the 20 largest hotels in the world, all vying for attention from the air.

27 have over 2,000 rooms, but the MGM Grand is largest single hotel in America, with 6,852 rooms.

One of the key Las Vegas icons that really stands out from the air is the Fountains of Bellagio.

This ambitious, choreographed display pays homage to the fountains of Europe's grandest cities, such as those that grace the piazzas of Rome, but in a totally modern and mesmerizing way.

From the air, the whole city is resplendent, bathed in bright neon light, masking the seedier side of Sin City but none of its celebrated sass.

(light music) Famous landmarks, inaccessible locations, ancient mysteries that fire the imagination.

Our experience of the world's greatest marvels is literally and figuratively elevated when we choose to explore them from the air.

In words attributed to Leonardo da Vinci, whose designs and desires were well before his time, "Once you have tasted flight, "you will forever walk the earth "with your eyes turned skyward for there you have been "and there you will always long to return."

(dramatic sweeping music)