Albuquerque International Balloon Festival - Wednesday 10/9/19
Wednesday we were informed that Smurf would be going up immediately after the Dawn Patrol in the Flight of Nations. This meant that we had to assemble the balloon quickly. I was thrilled when Koen asked if I had ever been up in a balloon, and was invited for the day's ride. I thought it would be hard to get into the basket, but in my excitement, I was in the basket really quickly. Koen in his typical calm fashion instructed me on what to expect. And then we were up!! The crowd cheered and clapped and gradually they began to shrink as we rose higher and higher. I'm not sure what I expected as I never had hopes of going up in a balloon. What struck me was how peaceful and calm the flight was. We floated over Albuquerque and I could look behind to see the balloon field dotted with trucks, lots of small people, and the many balloons that continued to rise and fill the sky with their presence. We were far ahead of them so they only appeared as small moving specks of color behind us. At one point, I was taking pictures of the shadow on the ground, and Koen told me to wait. He lowered the balloon and soon the shadow was on a cloud. It was unbelievable. We were able to watch the sun rise from behind the mountains. And when we finally descended, I could hear the sounds of the neighborhoods below us, especially the dogs barking as they sensed us overhead. We landed in a street of Rio Rancho and many neighbors came out to help us pack up the balloon. No champagne today as Koen was again cautious, and did not want to bring out the alcohol in front of the children that had gathered. Just a fantastic day that I won't forget!
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