by Marcus Altman
On a family vacation in October 2010, eighth grader Ryan Kahn saw flashing lights in the sky. He had arrived earlier than his parents, and when they came into the area, “They were like, “Is that a cow in the sky?””
Kahn went on a vacation with his two siblings, his parents, and his grandparents to the Southwest, and for three days they visited the International Balloon Festival, held annually in New Mexico.
The hot air balloon celebration took place in an area that was “like a giant football field,” Kahn described. Mostly, it was just for people who wanted to show off their hot air balloons, but there were some businesses that advertised themselves on their balloons. There were many four-leaf-clovers and American flags, and there was even a giant Pepsi can.
“A Pepsi can. I couldn’t believe it. There was actually a Pepsi can,” Kahn said, with a smile.
One balloon was shaped like Darth Vader’s head, “and he flew it into a tree, and it was so funny. I think it popped, because it was flying across the sky,” stuttered Kahn, between spouts of laughter.
On the first day of the festival, all of the balloons were grounded, which gave Kahn and his family time to walk around and talk to the balloon owners. One man said that he had bought his balloon from a “shifty guy who pulled over on the highway asking people if they wanted to buy something on the side of his truck,” Kahn relayed. “There were these dudes walking around in referee shirts, and they were sort of like tour guides,” said Kahn.
On the second day, Kahn and his family got up at 5 A.M. to see the balloons being filled. The process begins with two enormous fans blowing air into the balloon, which was on its side. Once there is enough air, a giant fire is lit to warm the air inside the balloon to make it fly.
“It was really fascinating to see, but you couldn’t hear anything because it was so loud,” Kahn said.
Later that day, Kahn witnessed something that left him awestruck. There was a cow balloon.” Still trying to comprehend what he had seen, Kahn’s face lit up as he continued, “It was the biggest balloon I had ever seen. Its legs must have been twenty feet high!”
On the final night, Kahn and his family had dinner at a restaurant that was on top of a mountain. That night, there were fireworks to celebrate the festival. But, Kahn had the unusual experience of being above them.
“We were higher than the fireworks, and they looked like they were on the ground, basically.” Kahn said. It was on nights like these that “we were overcome by excitement,” Kahn remembered. Too excited to sleep, in fact.
