I can't believe I've never been to the balloon festival. When two girlfriends called me up in January and asked if I wanted to go, of course I said yes! I knew hotel rooms would be scarce, as it is a huge event. I did my homework and found Sandia Resort and Casino. It looked like they were the closest and nicest hotel. In fact, I thought, I could walk if I needed to (the traffic is horrible), as it is less than four miles away. Or I could stay by the pool and watch the balloons if it gets too crowded on site!
As time went on, I noticed I was the only one who had gotten a hotel room. My friends get pretty busy, so I reminded them, and of course some things had come up and they couldn't go. Not to worry... my husband is busy seeding winter wheat in October, so I decided to keep my hotel room and go anyway!
Everything worked out perfectly. I took over a thousand photos and would have bored my girlfriends to death. Or I might have partied with them and been late for the 4AM wakeup call. Yes, 4AM! The hotel shuttle left promptly at 4:30AM. Thank goodness we left early, because it took an hour to get dropped off! The freeway (I25) was a parking lot with three accidents, and the festival had to close it's gates because too many people came.
It was pitch black, and freezing cold. Well, not freezing, but I only had three layers on, so I bought a blanket. And a breakfast burrito and a hot chocolate! There were lots of people, so I wandered far from the madding crowd and into the field. There was a pilot briefing going on at the far side, and everyone was setting up their balloons and testing their burners. It was incredible! Talk about exciting and thrilling. The balloons started lifting off into the dark sky, and everyone cheered.
The mass ascension started a little later, and it was crazy-fun. Everyone had giant smiles on their faces, and cheered as each balloon lifted off. There were 549 of them in all! I have never seen so many happy people, and I was afraid our smiles would freeze in place!. The sun came up, and I warmed up. Chip and Joanna from "Fixer Upper" were there somewhere, but I never saw them in the huge crowd.
By 9AM, the event began to wind down. I headed back to the hotel and changed into my bathing suit. I had lunch by the pool, read my book, and met two fun ladies to talk to. At 5PM, the shuttle was heading back for the evening glow festivities.
I had never seen the giant blow-up balls that kids could get inside and spin on the water, face painting, etc. Nor had I seen the Velcro suit for kids to put on, jump, and try to score the highest points. What a hoot! The carnie-girl had to peel them off the wall afterwards! I had my trusty blanket to sit on, and found a great spot to sit and wait: right by the Western Digital tent with live music! It was like being at a concert in the park, with kids playing and lots going on. It was too windy for the Evening Glow... apparently the fire would burn the skirts of the balloons...not a good idea! (Balloons are super expensive... $25,000 and up! And that is just for a small, two-person one! Some of the shapes must be around $100,000!)
By the time the fireworks started, I was ensconced on my blanket with a box of Krispy Kremes and a bottle of water. What a beautiful show! I didn't have my heavy tripod with me, but I had my Krispy Kreme donut box and timer for my camera. The photos were just for fun. By 9PM it was time to head for the hotel. I was cold, but happy, and decided to sleep in. The weather wasn't supposed to be good in the morning, anyway. When I awoke and looked outside, it was foggy and raining. The night wasn't a go, either, which was why I set up my camera in my hotel room window. That's where the great lightning shot came from!
Monday morning dawned clear and cold, but I had on more layers and my blanket when I headed to the site. It was a day of competitions, and oh what fun! Hundreds of balloons were in the air. Who can drop a ribbon closest to the target? Again people all around me were smiling, for hours, and they probably had cheek-ache the next day!
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