Ballooning

Man has always wanted to fly and the truth is that these times that we are lucky, are quite good in that sense. Planes, spaceships, helicopters and even that curious and dangerous sport in which you jump out of a plane with a special suit, like a bat, to fly taking advantage of the air currents. It's awful!

But without a doubt one of the best and most placid flights there is is the one provided by the hot air balloons. Have you ever flown in one? In many parts of the world it is an experience that is offered to the traveler, so let's learn a little more about this fantasy journey today.

Hot air balloons

The basic concept of a balloon that flies is the hot air that tends to rise. This is what Archimedes said when he stated that "a body totally or partially submerged in a fluid at rest experiences a vertical upward thrust equal to the weight of the dislodged fluid." It is the hydrostatic thrust o Archimedes' principle, and thinking of a hot air balloon in the equation, air is the fluid.

A balloon is that, a balloon that has a hole at the bottom, where there is a candle or heat source, which is the one that contains a mass of hot air that is, in turn, controlled by a burner that is subject to a harness and that runs on propane gas most of the time.

Then there is the basket that carries people. Remember that balloons lack propellant and they are only carried away by the air currents, being able raise or lower the height by adjusting the burner.

It seems like the origins of hot air balloons date back to the beginning of the XNUMXth century, at least the first experiences of the hand of a Brazilian priest named de Gusmao and, mainly, of the Montgolfier brothers, French themselves. Centuries later, in 1999, a Swiss and a Briton, Piccard and Jones, were the first to fly around the world in a non-stop balloon in 19 days and 21 hours.

Fly in a balloon today

Today fly in a balloon it is a tourist pleasure, a smooth glide over the land that provides beautiful landscapes. You can practically fly in a balloon around the world, you just need a tourist company that makes the offer, beautiful landscapes and tourists.

In Europe there is also a popular event, the European Hot Air Balloon Festival, very popular in Spain and throughout the south of the continent. I have a friend in Igualada, Barcelona, and she always goes and takes some really beautiful pictures. This festival usually takes place in the month of July, summerAlthough it is not yet known what will happen this year with the pandemic.

The Igualada festival lasts four days, from Thursday to Sunday, and it is on the airfield of the Avenida de Catalunya. During those days there are balloon competition, exhibitions, flights and at night a night glow in which the balloons go up to the flights and turn off the burners after sunset. Precious. The flights are in the early morning and late in the afternoon because, it is known, these two are the best times of the day to fly in a balloon.

Festival goers can also fly but it is always advisable to book. It really is a very special and beautiful time of year to visit Igualada, because in the center of the city there are many related activities, all very cultural. Pilots and balloons arrive from all over the world and there are really challenging and fun edits. Perhaps this year it cannot be organized, we will see, but without a doubt it will return and we must go.

The best balloon flights in the world

There are some tourist destinations that offer unforgettable hot air flights. For example, Cappadocia, in Turkey. There are many companies and the tour is classic: they pick you up at the hotel, take you to the airfield very early or in the afternoon before dark, you fly and if it is your first time there is a certificate and a champagne toast.

A few weeks ago we talked about Bangar, in Myanmar. Well, it is another wonderful destination to fly in a balloon. In this case, instead of a karst landscape with caves and white pinnacles turned into churches and houses, we will see temples and stupas Asian women in a landscape between green and reddish. Close, in Cambodia, there are flights in Angkor Vat.

If you like the African air, the best veil is a balloon, you have it over it. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. Beyond the extensive african savannaa is a unique point of view to enjoy the wild life that we only see from television and by National Geographic.

To see castles and landscapes of the Brothers Grimm there is the Loire Valley, France. There were once more than 300 castles around here and although there are not so many left today, those that are are precious treasures, legacies from another era. It mixes with mountains, forests, gardens and vineyards, in addition to medieval villages exits from a postcard.

Along the Li River in China, you will see karst formations near Guilin and Yangshuo. These landscapes are beautiful and have been featured in various movies and series, as well as traditional Chinese paintings. It is true that you can tour the area by boat but hot air balloons are great.

Teotihuacan, in Mexico, It is another wonder seen from the heights. The pyramids They are from another world, beautiful constructions that seem more futuristic than old. To hire one of these trips you just have to ask in Mexico City.

United States it also offers its own. It is a huge country, with beautiful landscapes, so you can fly over Napa Valley or Monument Valley in Utah, the classic landscape seen in the movie Thelma and Louise o Forrest Gump: canyons, rock formations, arid and reddish land. Won't you go that far? Well, in New York There are flights over the Genesee River and its canyon, with beautiful waterfalls. showing the best in May.

Finally, the ancient lands of Egypt and Jordan. In Egypt a flight over the King's Valley is what can not be missing. Egypt is the cradle of our history, of our desire for adventure and a chest of mysteries. Thebes, the Nile, Luxor, the Mortuary Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, the Temple of Ramses II and III… And in Jordan the lands of Wadi Rum are another spectacle.

As you can see, if you like or would like to fly in a hot air flight practically anywhere in the world you can do it. The landscape will vary, nothing more. My advice is to inquire about serial companies and those responsible for security. There have been accidents, right now I remember the one in Egypt, dramatic, in which many tourists died, so the important thing is to be careful and not hire anything. The rest is to enjoy.


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