Ever since I saw my first hot air balloon rise above me as I went on my morning run in Melbourne, I have wanted to go on one. We never went in Melbourne. We always said we would go somewhere else. Cappadocia has earned the reputation of one of the best places to experience a hot air balloon. After some convincing and overcoming some trepidation about the -8 degree temperature we'd experience while up in the air, we decided to bite the bullet and get up at 4:30 a.m. for our 5:15 a.m. pickup time with Butterfly Balloons.
The experience was not like I expected and all in a good way. We missed sunrise because our original balloon had a problem and we needed to wait for them to set up another balloon. That didn't stop us from taking pictures of the other balloons starting to rise alongside the "sailors beworn" red sun, with a snow-covered volcano backdrop. It turned out to be the best use of that 10 minutes. Once we all climbed into our hot air balloon basket, before we knew it, the balloon had risen a few hundred feet. I didn't feel a thing! I always thought that a hot air balloon would create a sense of instability and would shake and blow with the wind. I didn't feel a thing. It was such a smooth experience. We soared over the fairy chimneys and the various valleys, catching all of the colours and shadows caused by the sunrise. Then we also saw all of the Byzantine Christian villages from the sky. You could see the various pigeon houses and cut-out windows in the volcanic stone. I hadn't expected to see that. Plus, because of the 10 minute delay, we were able to cross a mountain which other balloons hadn't been able to cross because of a wind that died out when we got there. As a result, we landed right near one of the open-air Byzantine museums. How did the balloon land? We were all prepared for our landing positions, which involves holding on for dear life while in a squat at the bottom of the balloon. We had mentally prepared to be dragged for a few hundred feet. Did we need to use our landing positions? No! Not only did we not need to use our landing positions, but the balloon operator landed spot on to the balloon trailer!
We then helped to squish the air out of the balloon and had our champagne while the balloon guys packed up everything before delivering us home. That wasn't the end of our day! We ended up meeting this American critical care doctor, Luke, who is in residency at Bellview Hospital in NYC, on the balloon. He is hilarious! We ended up meeting up with him after breakfast, sharing a long shisha and having tea, and then relaxing for dinner and drinks later. It was absolutely a perfect day.
The experience was not like I expected and all in a good way. We missed sunrise because our original balloon had a problem and we needed to wait for them to set up another balloon. That didn't stop us from taking pictures of the other balloons starting to rise alongside the "sailors beworn" red sun, with a snow-covered volcano backdrop. It turned out to be the best use of that 10 minutes. Once we all climbed into our hot air balloon basket, before we knew it, the balloon had risen a few hundred feet. I didn't feel a thing! I always thought that a hot air balloon would create a sense of instability and would shake and blow with the wind. I didn't feel a thing. It was such a smooth experience. We soared over the fairy chimneys and the various valleys, catching all of the colours and shadows caused by the sunrise. Then we also saw all of the Byzantine Christian villages from the sky. You could see the various pigeon houses and cut-out windows in the volcanic stone. I hadn't expected to see that. Plus, because of the 10 minute delay, we were able to cross a mountain which other balloons hadn't been able to cross because of a wind that died out when we got there. As a result, we landed right near one of the open-air Byzantine museums. How did the balloon land? We were all prepared for our landing positions, which involves holding on for dear life while in a squat at the bottom of the balloon. We had mentally prepared to be dragged for a few hundred feet. Did we need to use our landing positions? No! Not only did we not need to use our landing positions, but the balloon operator landed spot on to the balloon trailer!
We then helped to squish the air out of the balloon and had our champagne while the balloon guys packed up everything before delivering us home. That wasn't the end of our day! We ended up meeting this American critical care doctor, Luke, who is in residency at Bellview Hospital in NYC, on the balloon. He is hilarious! We ended up meeting up with him after breakfast, sharing a long shisha and having tea, and then relaxing for dinner and drinks later. It was absolutely a perfect day.
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