i went hot-air ballooning and all i got was a lousy cert?

apparently, fear was not a factor for me.

in the last episode, we witnessed this blogger who realised albeit a little too late that she has bitten off more than she can chew. she went ahead with all the bookings for hot air ballooning only to remember at the very last minute that she has acute altophobia, a condition in which it is strongly recommended to abstain from anything related with heights unless she fancies wet pants and quivering knees, of course.

perhaps it was too early in the morning and my systems were still warmly curled up in the cozy hotel bed back in the city centre, i think i woke up when most of you have just started to go to bed. it was very exciting, to finally be able to live what i have dreamt of for several years, i almost felt the physical need to put a check on an imaginary list somewhere.

the entire experience was surreal; the ackward climbing into the chest-high basket like a clumsy rhino, the slow lifting off from the ground, the cold air of the early morning, the vast flat lands below, the continued ascent even after i've screamed enough! enough! inside my head for the millionth time, the bumpy landing, the group effort in keeping the balloon and the champagne breakfast afterwards. unforgettable of course was the occasional loud blasting of the fire over my head which had me nearly ready to duck to the floor every time. the pilot turned and looked at me in mid-flight and said you don't have to hold on to the handles during the flight. only when you land. like hell i don't, i'm not letting go off it no matter what you say, mister! of course, i replied with a meek i'm afraid of heights. he must have wondered what i was doing there. then again, he told me after the flight that he was also afraid of heights, which in turn led me to wonder what he was doing piloting our flight!!! there was a small hole on the floor under our legs. i wonder if that was where the by-products of quivering cowards like me wash out. so, if you were relaxing in the countryside with a glass of cabernet sauvignon and a splotch of liquid fall from the sky, don't be too quick to assume that it was the birds that just took a leak.

there are too many tales too tell, too many amusing stories to share for this small little blog.
the rest of the holiday was as enjoyable, a mixture of lounging, relaxing and active sight-seeing.

next time, some place that i have never been to perhaps? as fun as this trip has been, i'm starting to tire of visiting the same old countries.

new zealand? beijing? switzerland? finland?

i must start planning now!