5C's Que Pasa

Fortunately Thursday was not as cold as Wednesday had been but still nippy at 42F.  More people had arrived and the shuttles were full.  We ended up taking one coming into the park but between us and others doing the same we were quickly full and after a half loop of the RV park we were headed to the field.  Somehow I ended up chatting with the lady across the bus aisle from me.  It was a short 8 – 10 minute ride to the drop off area but we covered a number of subjects.  At one point she said that she knew a Canadian that went to Mexico and who wrote a blog.  I looked at her and said that my name was Contessa.  She fell back in her seat and screamed.  It was Cheryl Cox who writes the blog Desert Diva.  We have been reading each others blogs for several years as well as corresponding privately re various subjects including our pets and their various aliments.

What a surprise!  Sadly we did not have much time together as Cheryl is volunteering and had to check in.  She was supposed to come visit that afternoon but never made it.  You never know where or when you are going to meet a blog reader.

Dawn Patrol had just taken off as we arrived.  Today was the Special Shape Rodeo or the first day of special shape balloons.  Everyone was getting their balloon ready.

First time we saw this clown.  The other side of this balloon is a sad face with a frown and tears.

It was also Kids Day and not a good place to be if you don’t do well in crowds.

It was a spectacular day.  There were hundreds of balloons taking off all around us,  not just the special shapes.  Seven to twelve would go up at the same time and then another group would ascend.  So fun to be in the midst of it all.

“Snobird” on the left from Palmer, AK ( that is how they spell the name of the balloon ).  “Chic – I – Boom” from Crooks, SD on the right.

“The Little Bees”.  “Joey and Lilly” featuring “Joelly The Baby Bee “.  Joey and Lilly are 98,000 cu/ft and Joelly is 56,000 cu/ft.

Pirate Jack from Newport Beach, Ca.

The sun burst through the clouds adding color to the balloons.

That is “Great Eggspectations” flying over my head.  The flying goose is an Albuquerque balloon piloted by a medical doctor.

I asked and was told that there were only 568 balloons registered this year, the largest hot air balloon event in the world.  At one point in 2010 they had 1000 balloons at the Albuquerque International Balloon Festival.  They are now trying to keep it at 600 or under as there is not enough room for all the balloons on the field.  There is talk of expansion.  We saw hundreds upon hundreds of balloons fly off yet we did not see four of the new shapes for this year.  Perhaps they did not make it.  One was from Australia, two were from Brazil and the other from Florida.

What made Thursday morning extra special was how the balloons would ascend, fly in one direction, go higher and catch a different air current back.  It was a morning of perfect winds.  This is called the Albuquerque Box which keeps the balloons overhead.  Have a look at the 90 second video that shows how this Box works.

Meteorologist Jen Carfagno explains:

Albuquerque’s weather helped make it the Balloon Capital of the World. The Albuquerque Box wind pattern allows balloonists to easily make a round trip with a simple change in altitude.

Eventually some of the balloons landed back on the field.  We had a great morning enjoying the balloons and then walked from one end to the other, checking out the vendors and food booths.   We picked up a few souvenirs and had a snack before heading back to the RV.  For those keeping track, we should have check out by 11AM, instead we had a relaxed morning and only got back at 10:30AM.  On Tuesday we had been able to extend our stay for just one more night.  We had not seen the Twilight Twinkle Glow nor the Balloon Glow due to cancellations because of wind and tonight would be the perfect ending to our stay here.  The Special Shape Glowdeo would only be for the 78 special shaped balloons plus the regular round Canon balloon as they a sponsor of the balloon fiesta.  We spent the afternoon packing up for our Friday morning departure.

We were surprised when we got to the field that yet again nothing was happening.  Everything was on hold due to the yellow flag.  There was a breeze that wavered between 9 – 12 mph.  We were speaking with a balloon crew supervisor who explained all the details to us and even showed us how his wind indicator worked.  Because these balloons were special shapes, some very large, others top heavy and awkward the wind needed to be 5 mph or lower in order to have a static display and to do the glow.

At least the sunset was memorable.

So we hung out and spoke with a few balloonists until 8PM ( we had been there for just over two hours – waiting ).   Slowly a few vehicles with balloons and crews began to leave the field.  I noticed that the yellow flag was down but neither the green nor red flag replaced it.  By now it was full dark and the lady I was speaking with from the “Fish” balloon said that the glow would not likely happen due to the wind, plus they had to be back by 4:30AM Friday for Day 2 of the special shape balloons.  Everyone, balloonists as well as the crown, were disappointed.  We left and got back just before 8:30PM, in time to sit and watch the exceptional fireworks from the warmth of the RV along with a glass of vino.  Certainly not the way we expected to end our final evening in Albuquerque.

It was a downright chilly morning Wednesday morning at 38F/3.3C 🙁   As we walked down the road, the wind bit into my forehead and I instantly recalled having a scarf wrapped around my forehead as a child.  We had to wait a bit for a shuttle but while not toasty warm we were not shivering.  Colin had finally switched to long pants from shorts and had added a light fleece between his shirt and jacket.

Not only was there no dawn patrol, no balloons were laid out.  Everything was at a standstill.

Things did not look good.  Apparently the cutting wind that we were feeling was even stronger higher up.  It was a waiting game.

We needed to warm up so we headed into a vendors booth.  This is the only balloon basket like this in the USA, brand new style.  Cost of $80,000.00 but what a way to travel.  Luxurious padded seats with seat belts, a tray table to hold your champagne and an excellent view due to the basket being lower on one side.

We chatted with the vendor who is also a balloon pilot.  Regular balloons start at $40,000.00.  I have no idea if the balloon envelope is included in that price.  Eventually he told us that he thought that the entire morning event was going to be cancelled because of the wind.  We thanked him for his time and moved back out into the bitter stiff breeze.  Should we go get a coffee and wait it out or should we head back to the RV.   Still no movement on the field nor a change in the yellow flag.  We started walking to the food area and at the same time turned to each other and said ‘let’s go home”.  We got back to the RV at 8:15AM.

About 8:25AM the green flag went up.   Dawn Patrol is at 6AM and it was cancelled as well as the Laser Show and the Krispy Kreme Morning Glow which we would have loved to see. A single balloon carrying the American flag went up as the National Anthem was played.  We watched that on TV.

About 8:25 we were surprised to see some balloons.

We were disappointed that we had left the field at  8AM but the morning session normally starts at 6AM plus we were cold.

At least we still got to see some balloons fly over.  It didn’t seem like a lot of balloons to us, perhaps 50.  The next day we found out that less than 75 had inflated and ascended.

Once again we had errands to run.  The three new lights that Colin is installing in the bedroom, all have different requirements in size of screws etc.  Typical RV construction, all due to different thicknesses of the three walls.  We also made a stop at Costco to pick up a few things including three cases of a lovely Sauvignon Blanc that I found out is being discontinued.  We are only able to get to one more Costco before we cross into Mexico and I did not want to take a chance on this one wine not being available.  Bit by bit I am amassing my wine supply for the winter on the Isla.

Every afternoon a water truck went up and down each row at least 2 to 3 times to keep the dust down.  We never noticed any dust whatsoever.

We spent the afternoon putting things away in the RV,  with Colin editing photos  and myself working on two blog posts.  Once Colin finished installing the new lights ( photos soon ) he got in some guitar time.  We were both ready to go to bed early as we knew that Thursday was going to be a very special day here at the balloonfest.

Sunset to the West.

But I preferred the reflection to the East.

It was windy all night with rain showers as late as 4:30AM.  We were on the field by 7AM and there was that yellow flag yet again.  We are not getting the full Balloon Fiesta experience but we are hanging in there.  There were not too many people on the field Tuesday morning.  We walked up and down checking out various pilots that were laying out their balloons on the grass, some do put a tarp down first.  Everyone was waiting for the green flag that meant that this event is a go.  Once again no Dawn Patrol nor the Laser Light Show.  Day 4 and we have only seen this once on Day 1.   Finally the Rainbow Riders, all twelve of them took off.   They take riders up for a mere $500.00 US per flight per passenger and they cram as many as they can into their baskets.

Slowly others began to inflate their balloons.

Love this artsy shot Colin 🙂

Canadian balloon by Sundance Balloons out of Ontario.

One of this year’s new balloons.

Pigasus from Battle Creek, MI, new this year.

PXMART DOLL from Taitung City, Taiwan, new for 2018.

The penguin balloon is called Puddles and is from Breadstone – United Kingdom.

Zebra’s dressed in black and white are the officials who give each balloon the okay to launch.  They control the entire field.

The first ever Emoji balloon from Oswestry, Shropshire, Great Britain.

Owl is also a new balloon this season from Godalming, Surrey – Great Britain

Simbaloo on the left from Basingstoke, Hampshire – Great Britain.

Not many flew Tuesday as the wind was blowing in the wrong direction.  I25 is in this direction as well as many businesses and shopping areas, very little place to land a balloon.

Saxon Balloon from Sao Paul, Brazil.  Quite clever.

Freedom Flight Balloon V from St. Cloud, Minnesota.  It is 105,000 cu.ft.

They did not fly but fired up their burners over and over to the cheers of the crowd.

This balloon is dedicated to ‘Prisoners Of War, Missing in Action’.  Major US Conflicts Since 1941 – still missing:  WWII ~ 73,500 + ~ Korea 7,800 + ~ Vietnam 1,600 + ~ Cold War 100 + OIF-OEF 6?

When the pilot is flying she wears tennis shoes and all the other times she is in flip flops.

A new balloon this year, Cristo Redentor, Helio Neto.  From Sao Paulo, Brazil.  This was the first time this balloon has been inflated since the beginning  of this balloon fiesta.

After this we went to Trader Joe’s and a grocery store and the laundromat.  We got back at 3:20PM and at 4PM, had the happy hour I wrote about in the last post.  Each day is full of activity to the point of being worn out ( mostly because of the time spent posting ) but we are so blessed to be here.

We had decided to stay home Monday and not head into the field.  We slept in until about 7:30AM.

It was a windy night and still at 7:30AM a yellow flag.  The balloons normally launch at 7AM.

Shortly after 8AM we looked out the window and we had balloons all around us.  The winds were bringing them towards us plus some balloons had launched away from the field and were heading towards the official field.  We later discovered that a few had landed in the grass area in the middle of the RV’s plus a few had landed among the RV’s ( one in your area Micheal ).

Even Airabelle was up. Her balloon weighs 910 lbs and she needs a lot of wind to fly and in the correct direction as well.  She needs a lot of space to land.

It was fascinating to watch them overhead.

Good call to say home as there were more balloons above us than at the launch field.

Monday was our day to do some local site seeing.  We headed out toward Hwy 14, where just before Tijeras ( which is the beginning of the scenic Turquoise Trail ) we were treated to some music along 1,300ft of Route 66.  Simply by obeying the speed limit, specifically placed rumble strips play “America the Beautiful”.  What fun!

So many neat little towns as well as a few detours long the Turquoise Trail.  I on the spur of the moment ( wrong decision ) wanted to drive up the Sandia Crest. The summit of Sandia Mountain is 10,678′ and you get there by driving 14 miles of very very twisty roads with hairpin turn after hairpin turn.  20MPH is standard.  It took just over 90 minutes out of our day ( return ) and all we saw at the top along with snow was a thick fog with no view at all.  Rather than wear out our brakes Colin had to keep downshifting with each turn.  Next time we will take the Sandia Peak Tramway to the top.  Sandy commented that she and Rex had done it and enjoyed a spectacular sunset at the top.  Timing is everything.

Beautiful views along the way and several neat little towns to visit.

The Sandia Crest drive gave Colin an appetite and so we stopped in Madrid for a late breakfast/early lunch.  We ate at the small cafe next to this very old home which is owner occupied.

Maggie’s Diner from the Wild Hogs movie set.

Some neat doors in Cerrillos.

Our first thought in reaching Santa Fe was how huge the city was but then it is the capitol of New Mexico.  The historic section of Santa Fe was more manageable but a chaos of vehicles and tourists.  Parking was a flat rate of $15.00 whether for an hour or all day.  This is the famous Loretto Chapel.

An amazing feat of construction.  This was taken by me as were all of the photos in this post.

Please take a moment to click here and read about this miraculous staircase, taken from the official website.  If you Google the Loretto Chapel there are many links discussing how impossible it was and still is to build such a staircase without a center support not to mention that it is a double spiral.  To this day architects and mathematicians have no idea how this could have been built.  It is impossible to replicate.  No one knows where this type of wood came from and how could a carpenter build such a piece of art with no tools.

This was our favorite stop in Santa Fe.  I am fascinated by this staircase.

The Palace of Governors.

We also checked out a few shops.  Loved these lights.

A beautiful piece of art but at $45,000.00USD, no gracias.

San Miguel Church, the oldest church structure in the USA.  The original adobe wall and alter were built by Tlaxcalan Indians from Mexico under the direction of Franciscan Padres, ca.1610.

Our last stop before heading back to Albuquerque was to visit the Oldest House.

Extremely tiny inside the two room home.

Another long day.  I have cut out a lot of photos in order to make this just one post.  New Mexico is a fascinating place and we have only touched a small corner.

We have been going non stop since we left home September 27th.  Between the balloon events we are editing and posting.  Yesterday late morning, we took off for a day tour.  Today after the morning balloon event ( so very different again ) we were out doing things like laundry and groceries.  We have had no personal down time.  I am taking a day off from posting about the ballonfest, which means that you will now be three days behind the photos of the balloon fiesta.

A few days ago as we returned from grocery shopping, a lovely lady approached us and asked if I was Contessa.  It was Marie, a blog reader from New Orleans, recently relocated to Mission, Texas.  She has the loveliest accent 😎  She had read on my blog that we were here and had spent considerable effort to locate us among the 1200-1600 RV’s parked here.  So we set up a happy hour meet up for yesterday, Tuesday the 9th.  Marie’s husband, Craig is a volunteer here at the fiesta.  She also used to write a blog.  Marie has been following me for several years now.  So much fun to connect in person.

Meanwhile we had met up with Herb who along with his wife Kathy also volunteer here.  They had mentioned that they might drop by one afternoon.  By the way be sure to check out Herb’s blog, they are fulltimers.  Click here for their blog.

So Craig ( Marie’s husband, on the left ) and Marie ( in the yellow jacket ) arrived for happy hour at 4PM.  Shortly thereafter our new neighbor  ( we had people on either side of us leave as well as those in front and behind ) in the Airstream dropped in for a wee chat. After he left,  Kathy ( in the purple jacket ) and Herb dropped by.  It was a chilly day and kept getting cooler.  Both Marie and Kathy ended up with fleece blankets on their legs.  I really should have moved us all inside.

Marie and I.  We chatted for over three hours. She is such a sweet lady.  They are coming to Canada next June and we hope to meet up, but we will be in Europe until June 21st so it might not work out but we can hope.

Eventually Kathy and Herb had to leave, it was dinner time and I think they might have been somewhat chilled.

It was so cold that I was back to three upper layers and gloves.  But I was still talking.

It was difficult to say adios to Marie as we were so very close in all that we had discussed.

Just as I had posted a few days ago…!  Marie will be a special forever friend.  By the way Marie, it was a Pinot Grigio that I was pouring for you and Craig.  Colin and Craig also had great conversations.

It is always immensely special to meet a blog reader and even more so to meet someone so memorable here at the Balloon Fiesta.  We were fortunate to meet Herb and Kathy as well, exceptional people.  Who knows what the future will hold for us all.

Back to the Balloon Fiesta next post.