Epic!

Not many things will get me up early in the morning. But a deluxe hot air balloon ride over Cappadocia had me jumping out of bed at 4:30am. It’s up there with top life time experiences. You couldn’t even tell you were moving until you looked below and saw the ground passing underneath your balloon. It was soothing and exhilarating all at the same time. And I think we definitely got the best pilot out there, Sanjay. What’s up with this town and their incredible people? He took us over fruit trees so we could try and pick a plum from the branches. He even spotted a fox on a rocky ridge and then took the balloon down so we could skirt the ridge and try and flush him out.

One of the most amazing sights was coming up from the valley and being able to see over the ridge into the next valley. At first you could only see a couple of balloons in the distance. But the further we rose, the more balloons that appeared… 5,10,20, 30! I have never taken so many pictures of any one thing in my life.

After checking out the different valleys that offered lush, green trees, pigeon caves, even homes built high into the cliff sides, Sanjay took us higher. The only sound was the intermittent rush of gas being let out into the balloon to lift us. What an incredible feeling to be rising higher and higher (7,000 feet) while being suspended in a basket. The end only came too soon and we were being lowered with the support crew waiting. But the fun continued as we all shared champagne and fresh cherry juice in a field covered in early morning light and wild flowers at 8:00am! What a buzz that was! The laughter continued back at our pension over breakfast while the other travelers wiped the sleep out of their eyes. Or worse, could only describe their hot air balloon flight as ‘ok’. Ours was epic.

As I was taking a much needed nap, Mike found himself unable to sleep and ultimately emotional due to not being at home and in conflict about the boat. So many feelings bubbling to the surface and not willing to hide any longer. But sometimes that is what the mind and body need to do in order to purge and process. After some time alone and then together, he was ready to get on with the day. There was another soccer game on after all! So we all made our way down to ‘Fat Boy’s’ to continue our World Cup mania. And who do we run in to but our pilot Sanjay! After the game he takes us to an even cooler outdoor restaurant with amazing food and we found ourselves whiling away most of the night there. Well, that is with a short break for some jewelry shopping! Man, it’s good to hang out with a girlfriend again.

Soon after Sanjay left (in his super cool Land Rover) we realized how stupid it was to pass up the opportunity to hang out with him tomorrow just because of some bus tour we booked. So Adam and Mike had the great idea to phone him and see if he would be willing to spend the day with us to check out some sights. The answer was immediately yes and another epic day planned. But the night isn’t over yet….after snagging some bottles of wine from the pension, we all headed back up the hill to chill out under the stars. The ending to another fantastic day.