Messages from Abroad | Goreme, Turkey

I awoke at approximately quarter to four, the sun still holding on for an hour's more rest. My two friends grudgingly awoke as well, as it was self-inflicting pain. We would ironically don under-eye bags for the sake of beauty. We made our way to a field littered with giant pieces of patchwork. That was going to hold us up 880 metres in the air? Okay. Why not.

Fire lit up the dim dawn sky, filling the pieces of fabric (aka balloons) with gas. The wicker baskets fit 16 of us. I was skeptical to say the least. After practicing our crash landing positions (not scary at all...), we were ready to go. The fire warmed up the cool morning air and danced on our faces with an orange light and we gained height with ease. As I raised my eyes from the growing distance from the ground to the sky, my tired eyes widened. Dozens of differently patterned hot air balloon filled the sky above Goreme. We grazed phallic rocks and gnome-like homes in the mountains and glided through hills as the landscape matched our altitude. As we steadily started to gain height, the balloon pilot started ominously yelling our height; "880 METRES!" As the sun rose and kissed the hundred or so balloons in the sky, the topography of Cappadocia laid out beautifully below, it was hard to think much of anything. But for once I was extremely content doing a novelty tourist attraction. We were surrounded by a tourist-made sight that for once added to the beauty of the surrounding landscape, rather than destroy it. It's beauty brought prosperity to the region - and rightfully so.