Up, Up and Away!

This is it!—the moment when hot air balloon aeronauts throw off the bonds of earth and float heavenward, up into the blue!

Lift-off is oddly silent. No roar of engines or whoosh of wind. Conversation is in normal tones. The launch crew bids pilot and passengers goodbye with wishes for a good flight. That's it.

Oh, sure, there's the roar of the burners every now and then, but in between ignitions it's completely silent. No traffic (remember, it's early in the morning, and you're way out in the country in any case), no bustle, just blissful peace and quiet.

The ascent is so dramatic for the aeronauts in the basket—floating effortlessly into the heavens like a bird!—that it feels as though there should be sound: a brass band, or applause, or even an angelic choir.

Soon the silence seems appropriate. The exhilaration is all internal. It's unbelievable to be floating through the air like this, but it's happening. Everyone settles into a state of heightened wonder, and surveys the panorama: the moonscape of Cappadocia.