My first balloon fiesta

It took quite a bit of effort to launch a balloon at the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta on Oct. 3.
Highway Hasman photo

Getting up at 4:30 on a Sunday morning is not a fun thing to do, but this time it was special.

I was going with my mom (she helped me move from Wyoming to New Mexico) to day two of the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, a nine-day event where people congregate to share their love for balloons. 

Getting to the parking lot for the park and ride at the Coronado Center shopping mall was not the issue. It was finding the area where the lines and school buses were.

After 15 minutes of telling strangers that I was as lost as they were, we finally found the rows of vehicles and people walking down to the buses. 

The bus driver was a bit too animated at 5:40 a.m. At each turn she told everyone to collectively say "Wee." That was in addition to the lit up colorful balloon lamps inside the bus. 

Oohs and aahs

After we got off the bus and woke up from our slumbers we saw a handful of balloons ready to go during the Dawn Patrol.

My mom wondered if that was all the balloons that she would see at the event. After standing for a few minutes I thought the same thing.

Boy, we were wrong.

The Krispy Kreme balloon fired up. Then a few more balloons followed suit.

As they went up, the crowd began applauding and whistling.  My mom asked for us to pose for a selfie in front of the balloons (pardon the poor photo quality).

HIghway Hasman photo

At that point, the event became more than a balloon show.

Mom and I then went our own ways to capture the event. I went north to see if there was anymore balloons and there must have been at least 50 ranging from Darth Vader to one sponsored by Coca-Cola. 

Apparently, pigs can fly.
Highway Hasman photo

As the balloons continued to orbit into the sky during the sunrise everyone marveled at the scene. Some made oohs and aahs while others pointed their cellular phones to the sky to capture the moment. 

Some of the balloons went up so high they looked like stars in outer space.

Highway Hasman photo

The balloon launch only took place for a couple of hours, but it was worth getting up before the crack of dawn to go see.

Here is a one-minute video I took at the fiesta.