When I just begun taking flight lessons, I was amazed at the super-human, eagle-like vision of my instructors that allowed them to spot airports where I could not see them at all. I took me a while to realize that they couldn't either.

After flying for a while in the same area we all begin to recognize landmarks around the airport, and we all, conciously or not, fly "IFR" (or follow power lines, or rivers, or water tanks.)

In one occasion I took my wife for a flight out of Lincoln Park, NJ, with a CFI as a chaperon, since I didn't have my ticket yet.
Flew in a direction the guy was not used to, and in two minutes had him hopelessly lost. ( For those that know the area, how can you not recognize route 287 and the reservoir by route 46? )

After I start taking passengers I guess I'll enjoy asking the victim-du-jour "Were is the airport?", while I keep my eyes locked in the cell tower that gives me my super-human navigation skills.

Roberto.