10.08.12: Fireworks Going Off In the Sky

Dear Friends and Family,

We flew to New Mexico for the weekend for a quick dip into the balloonist culture at the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.

Friday's flight was long. Saturday's wake up was excruciating. The line at the park and ride was Disneyesque. The cancellation of Saturday morning's activities due to wind was disappointing.

Instead, we spent Saturday morning in Santa Fe, touring Native American pueblos. P and I slept a lot, but Mr. mouse enjoyed himself. We returned to Albuquerque in the afternoon, ate lunch, and headed into the general parking queue for the afternoon activities.

We tagged P so that if we got separated, the police could track us down easily. We set up our seat cushions, and I enjoyed the afternoon sun while Mr. mouse and P went exploring. The evening balloon glow as fun, but not something we hadn't seen before. We had a chance to walk among the balloons and take pictures. The number of balloons was impressive, but the amount of time they stayed lit was shorter than I expected. We later learned they came down early because the wind speeds were getting too high.

We left despite P's declaration that she wanted to see the fireworks. Fortunately, we were able to view them from our car in a parking lot after we left.

Sunday morning we woke up and loaded the car and headed out with our fingers crossed. Mr. mouse sent me ahead to scout a spot for our picnic blanket while P slept in the car. It turns out I couldn't have asked for a better spot.

The Dawn Patrol, which goes out first to gauge wind conditions, inflated their balloons in a row, right in front of us. The first balloon that goes up the US flag with Mass Ascension inflated right next to us. And, we enjoyed a beautiful view of all of the balloons inflating and ascending. When the first balloon launched, I couldn't believe the beauty of it lifting into the sky, the balloon aglow from the burners. It really is a tremendous sight.

At first, they weren't sure how many pilots would choose to launch, but in the end, almost all of them did. There were balloons everywhere you looked. I couldn't take my eyes off them. They were like little jewels hanging in the sky. If you've never gone, it's worth a weekend to go and see the balloons. I highly recommend it.


Cheers!
mouse