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Balloon Fiesta – Part 2

written by Amanda October 10, 2014

In case you missed part 1, here’s the link to our post about the first two days at the Fiesta: Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta – Part 1

Sunday started off much the same as Saturday, except due to some cleaver maneuvering of the truck and a barrier made out of our 15′ rainbow windsock, we were able to deter the pedestrians and sleep in a bit longer. We missed the dawn patrol, and by the time we got up and out the word circulating around our neighborhood was that the balloons would not be flying that morning. There was barely even a breeze on the ground, but apparently farther up it was quite gusty, which is not conducive to safe balloon flying. So instead of rushing out, we leisurely made our way down to the field, hoping to at least see some of the balloons inflated on the field. Only a few were up, but they were some of the cool shape balloons that we hadn’t seen on Saturday. The crowd favorite was clearly the Elvis balloon.

Balloon Fiesta

A giant Elvis

Balloon Fiesta

A whale, a snail, and a crowd wishing for more.

Since the next balloon event wasn’t scheduled until the evening we decided to join Kate & Iain on a Breaking Bad tour. Fans of the show will know that it was filmed in Albuquerque. Those who have not watched it might just want to skip over this next part :) There are approximately 100 filming locations that you can visit around the city. Driving around to all 100 seemed a bit time consuming, so our tour director extraordinaire, Kate, chose seven that were all relatively close together. First stop – a dam on the edge of town. This is the very same dam where Jesse, and later Walt, wait for “the extractor” to pick them up and bring them to their new life.

Breaking Bad Tour

Tim waiting for his new life

Next we visited Saul’s office which is now a seedy looking strip mall night club, Walter & Skyler’s house (where we only took pictures out the window because apparently the homeowner is not too thrilled about the hundreds of people taking pics of her house), Jesse & Jane’s apartment (remember the one where she died), Jesse’s fancy looking house, and the iconic carwash/money laundering business.

Breaking Bad Tour

The A1A Carwash, Jesse’s house, Saul’s office, Jesse & Jane’s apartment, The White residence

Our last stop was way on the south end of town where we found the site of Los Pollos Hermanos. The restaurant is actually part of a New Mexico chain called Twisters, where you can buy burritos, tacos, and burgers, but no fried chicken. This place is clearly embracing their television fame with a sign by the front door and a plaque above the both where Walter sat in the show. I read a few different accounts that said their business had increased anywhere from 10 to 20 percent since the airing of the show.

Breaking Bad Tour

Los Pollos Hermanos/Twisters

After getting our fill of filming locations and burritos (which were better than expected) we made it back to the Balloon Park in time for a short rest before the start of the Airstream dog parade. Like all RVers, Airstreamers like to travel with their dogs. The parade was a great way to show off the dogs, although it was kind of hot so I think the people probably enjoyed it more than the dogs. Tim & I went along as spectators. Unfortunatley it was not the kind of parade where they throw candy at you.

Balloon Fiesta

Dogs on parade

After the parade we retreated under the shade of our awning for a bit before it was finally time for the Balloon Glow. Unlike the night before when the wind prevented a full show, this time conditions were perfect, and by the time we got down to the field hundreds of balloons were inflated and glowing.

Balloon Fiesta

Every person in this photo is taking a picture :)

Balloon Fiesta

Balloon Glow

The best part of the show was when the lights twinkled on and off. Every few minutes the announcer would count down from ten, the balloons would all twinkle, and the crowd would cheer.

The glow was followed by another fireworks show. This time we made it farther down on the field and it was far more spectacular than Saturday night. I think we were tired of taking pictures at that point, so I have no evidence to support this claim. You’ll just have to trust me when I say it was the perfect end to a perfect day.

The next morning (Monday) Tim had to work, so we decided to stay home and watch the balloons float over our house. There was no Mass Ascension scheduled, but we figured since they didn’t get to go up on Sunday morning, maybe they would on Monday instead. We figured right. The first balloons showed up before the sun.

Balloon Feista

Early morning balloons

We quickly threw on some warm clothes and joined our neighbors outside for the show.

Balloon Fiesta

My favorite part of this photo: Jase climbing up to his roof to set up his phone, & Eric filming on the roof of an Airstream motorhome – anything to get the shot

When the sun finally rose above the mountains we were treated to an amazing sight.

Balloon Fiesta

Sun lit balloons

The balloons kept coming and coming. We were thrilled to spot some of the special shape balloons that we hadn’t yet seen, like the giant pink elephant, a happy smily whale, and a long blue balloon wearing a surprised look on his face.

Balloon Fiesta

More and more balloons

Most of the balloons were headed across the street to the landing field, but some never made it that far. Like this sad face wizard/cat combo that landed in the bushes next to the Airstreams.

Balloon Fiesta

Pretty sure that’s not where they intended to land

After about on a hour the balloons slowed down and we wandered inside to start breakfast and work. We could still see masses of balloons off in the distance preforming flying contests over the field. A few started floating our way, and then we heard a large whoosh of air overhead and I ran outside to look. Sure enough, one was landing right behind us! That’s definitely not where they wanted to land, but it was a thrilling moment for us.

Balloon Fiesta

Balloon landing in our back yard

One of the things we really wanted to do before leaving the Fiesta was visit the Balloon Museum. Apparently hot air ballooning is such a big deal around here that they have an entire museum dedicated to the history of this sport (hobby? not sure how to classify it). Lucky for us the museum hours were extended during the fiesta (closing at 5 instead of 4) so we had plenty of time for an after work visit.

Balloon Fiesta

An entire museum dedicated to hot air balloons

The museum chronicled the entire history of ballooning from the very first flight in 1783 – where the test pilots were a duck, a sheep, and a rooster – all the way to 1999 when captains Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones flew a balloon around the world in under 20 days.

Balloon Museum

One of the capsules used for an around the world flight, war-time hot air ballon, replica of the first balloons

Balloon Museum

Tim’s “I’m in a balloon” face

We also learned all about the history of the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta. The event was inspired by a birthday party in 1971 where a single balloon was inflated as a party decoration. The following day the ballon took flight and the idea for the fiesta was born. One year later the very first Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta took place in a parking lot with with 13 balloons launching into the air. Forty-two years later the fiesta is more popular than ever with over 100,000 attendees and 500+ balloons. It’s now held on the custom designed 365 acre Balloon Fiesta park where year round ballooning events and races take place.

Balloon Museum

Ballooning has a long history in Albuquerque

After our museum tour we biked across the street to Brenda & Hector’s for dinner. After seeing them several days in a row I finally remembered to take a photo.

Balloon Fiesta

Hector & Brenda

Balloon Fiesta

and sweet girl Angel

When we got back home our neighborhood group was hanging outside so we sat with them for a bit. We had some newcomers, a family from Australia who purchased an Airstream in Oregon and are are planning to have it shipped home. Apparently this is way cheaper then buying one over there. I kind of wish we had met them before the last day, but as typically happens with large gatherings we ended up spending most of our time with our small group and didn’t meet as many new people as we could have. In fact, after the first day we never joined the Airstream happy hour gathering again. Not because we didn’t want to meet more people, but because we were enjoying the company of Lauri & Jase, Kate & Iain, Sarah & Frank, and Eric the filmmaker far too much to venture out.

Tuesday morning started out much the same as the day before. I peaked out the window around 7, and sure enough the balloons were starting to float overhead. Once again we threw on some clothes and headed out to watch the show. The very best thing about watching the balloon steps from our front door was the absence of a dress code.

Balloon Fiesta

Pajama pants, slippers, morning coffee, and my lazy footware choice

It was another incredible show. Wish I could see this every morning!

Balloon Fiesta

Another amazing morning show

We spotted even more special shape balloons.

Balloon Fiesta

Crazy clock, Aquarium balloon, Scarecrow, Winner of the creepiest balloon, Hatching dino

Balloon Fiesta

More shapes & faces

Balloon Fiesta

Balloons fill the sky

As the show wound down we all suddenly remembered that we would soon be parting ways and rushed to take some last minute photos. As usual it was hard to say goodbye, but was made easier by the fact that we already have plans to see all our new friends again.

Balloon Fiesta

Group shot, Lauri & Jase, Sarah & Frank, Ike looking oh so cute

The official time to exit the park was 11am, but as Tim was in the middle of work we decided to see if we could get away with staying there for the remainder of the work day. No one bothered us, but it was getting pretty hot in that asphalt parking lot, so sometime around noon we headed out.

Balloon Fiesta

All alone

I hope these two posts, along with the many, many photos, have conveyed just how amazing the Balloon Fiesta is. We don’t attend very many large events, and we are definitely not rally people, but we loved everything about this experience, and will definitely do it again someday.

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Amanda

previous post
Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta – Part 1
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Leaving New Mexico & Entering Texas

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14 comments

Metamorphosis Lisa October 10, 2014 - 4:18 pm

LOVE all the crazy shaped balloons! Looks like a really neat festival, worth the hassle even!

Gosh I loved Breaking Bad, too bad it ended…but it looks kinda fun to hit the sites and reminisce!

Reply
Amanda October 11, 2014 - 6:48 am

The shapes were our favorite too. I guess they can make nearly anything into a balloon. The Breaking Bad tour was fun. Our friends had just recently finished watching it, so we spent a lot of time reminiscing about the show.

Reply
Pam Wright October 10, 2014 - 5:15 pm

Thanks, Amanda, for the great experience at the ballon festival! What an amazing experience! I loved the night twinkling show. That alone would be worth going for. Your photos of the individual balloons were awesome. I really appreciate your two posts.

Reply
Amanda October 11, 2014 - 6:49 am

Glad you enjoyed the posts. It was even better in person :)

Reply
Bear Tracks Blog October 10, 2014 - 6:14 pm

Wow! You really got some great pics of those balloons! We were there last year and enjoyed it very much. Your camping spot was fantastic to see the show.

Reply
Amanda October 11, 2014 - 6:50 am

We were both taking pictures, and while that meant a ton of photos to sort through, it also meant that we were able to capture much more than normal.

Reply
Laurel October 10, 2014 - 9:20 pm

You definitely got the most out of the festival — the fun you had shines through in your post. The Elvis balloon is hilarious, and the evening Balloon Glow is beautiful. Your photos are great! I don’t think anyone could capture the festival better than you did.

Reply
Amanda October 11, 2014 - 6:51 am

Thanks Laurel! Elvis was one of my favorites, even though we never saw him fly. And the evening glow was quite a site to see. Can’t wait to go back again someday!

Reply
Sherry in MT October 13, 2014 - 8:15 am

Thank you SO much for the lovely blog posts about the fiesta. The pictures gave me goose bumps and I really need to figure out how to get there next year and maybe get a good camping place nearby (if I could only convince my employer to let me camp in their lot – hahaha). Safe travels.

Reply
Amanda October 16, 2014 - 8:16 am

Check out the RV camping options near the landing field. $30/night and a short walk or bike ride to the field. Probably the route we would take the next time around.

Reply
LuAnn October 14, 2014 - 8:24 pm

I loved these two posts! I cannot imagine being so close and waking to colorful balloons floating into the air. We too miss Beaking Bad and wish it hadn’t ended. I love your photo of Tim waiting for his new life. :)

Reply
Amanda October 16, 2014 - 8:18 am

It was truly the most amazing experience! The Breaking Bad tour was really fun. Lucky for me the mini van never showed up to take Tim to his new life :)

Reply
Mona Liza October 18, 2014 - 12:31 pm

Thank you for sharing this amazing event! I guess we have to start planning for next year or the following year. Amazing, amazing shots. Love it.

Reply
Susie January 21, 2018 - 8:04 am

Thank you for posting this story and all these photos. I am intrigued with hot air balloons. I was fortunate enough to get a ride in a hot air balloon a long time ago in my home state of MD. It was tethered, but we got up pretty high. Riding in a hot air balloon was on my bucket list. I would also love to come experience seeing all those balloons in the Albuquerque air.

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About The Watsons

About The Watsons

This is the story of Tim & Amanda. Since 2012, we have traveled the U.S. while living and working from our renovated 25-foot Airstream. Follow us on our crazy journey in search of beautiful scenery, fun adventures, interesting people, tasty foods, and more…

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