![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLBZ_Iwm1v5c53UbUjdxOc43zIQM4ZXQyD1lSE0Ydti6bmky3obMoMaBCPZz9-yhzKO7yb3fUYQotJYrZPmrCR6TQ5hIkdVW_tYUpCrESHGOiCT_LkbvaoAupxmStjxFihn8nAvXkYJyc2/s400/balloon2.jpg)
My sister sees a flier in our hotel lobby for hot air ballooning. We make a few phone calls. We get picked up the next morning at 7 a.m. for a a three-hour ride at sunrise, followed by champagne and breakfast.
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We get picked up with the balloon in a trailer. We test the wind direction with a rubber balloon at a VW dealership. We find out that the balloonist, Christoper, a driver, and my family will be running this whole production from setting up the balloon to putting it away.
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The balloon gets rolled out and clipped on, now we're ready to fill it. This is windy.
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Almost there! We're in a field next to a highway- the production is slowing down traffic.
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From here it becomes a chaotic shouting of "Get in! Get in!" and scrambling to get into the basket. Inside the balloon, it's time to take off.
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Liftoff!
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxpcB_5Ne4dChJ00gBxpQmzZExs6hg0mpmGP1j3royy0NYlccMHYpBxe2kpLKfLELTH8HZZKJ13jNPMgcuNA1ZFR4gzRmliWlRYThtpP5gH1kwzhjji2MJ4mPgy93z9aywJxlGtyhlrKXi/s400/balloon8.jpg)
The strangest thing about this was that you never got to see the balloon floating from the outside, except in shadows and reflections. Above is the balloon floating over a lake.
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The entire city of Bruges, from 1500 feet.
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At the end of the ride we got soaked in champagne and fed delicious, butter pastries fresh from a local bakery. I was a little tipsy and adrenaline filled for pictures after our "crash" landing in a farmer's field, so you'll have to forgive the missing pastry pictures.
2 comments:
LOVE!
Great pictures and loads of fun. I don't think I'd have the courage. Hubby-honey would LOVE to go and so someday I'll probably take Xanax. Your pictures are so amazing, I think it might be worth it.
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