In Luxor, I finally got to do something I’ve been itching to do for a long, long time: ride in a hot air balloon! We arrived as the crews were preparing the balloons. It’s pretty impressive to see these massive amounts of silk rise up and take shape. Viraj and I rode in the balloon on the left while the pretty, colorful balloon trailed us with its passengers, making for nice photos.
The heat from the flame was intense!
Take off!
We flew over the Temple of Hatshepsut which we would visit later in the day.
A site being excavated.
A wild dog.
Incredible views.
Sunrise over the Nile.
I loved seeing how each parcel of land was clearly demarcated for a specific purpose: residential, agricultural, or cultural.
It was early morning and plenty of people sleep outdoors where it’s much cooler overnight (reminding me of my days in Uzbekistan) so we basically spied on the neighbors as we flew by.
After an hour or so, the pilot gently set us down and began to shut down the balloon. Gathering the balloon itself was a much bigger task than I had realized.
Without a doubt, it was well worth getting up at 3:30 am for this experience!
