Pampanga|Hot Air Balloon Fiesta

Weekend Getaway

Wind swept unto my face while our bus drove to the desolated express way. We took an ordinary bus bound to Dau, Pampanga from the Five Star bus station in Pasay and it took us an hour and a half to reach the last stop. Normally in order to reach Clark Air Base, you must rent a tricycle that would cost for about P50. But in our case there was a Jeepney that offered us a cheaper ride because he wanted to make an extra from the sudden wave of local tourist that was going to the festival.

When we arrived, hundreds of early birds were already lined up in front of the Clark Free Port Zone. The 17^th Hot Air Balloon Fiesta entitled “A Weekend of Everything that Flies” was a four-day event starting from the 9^th of February up to the 12^th to showcase various flying activities. It was the last day and the venue was still jam packed.

Eager faces were everywhere, all of them patiently waited for the start of the festive. Those faces were soon painted with smiles when the line started to move. It’s still dark and there’s still plenty of time to go walk around or grab a coffee. The air was a bit damp and the cold breeze gave me a chill. The sun was unlikely to come out anytime soon and good thing that I brought my jacket to warm me from the unrelenting cold. After a few minutes, our lot decided look for a good spot to wait for the opening.

Soon the hot air’s started to roll in one by one to fire up the crowd. The last day officially started with a man, carrying the national flag, parachutes from a helicopter while national anthem was sung.

The hot air balloon’s set-up quickly followed moments after the singing was done, and soon the giants took over the scene. Balloons of various shapes and design awed the crowd. There were the common shaped balloons with sponsor’s name on it, a cute panda balloon that was a bit smaller compared to the other balloons, an ice cream balloon, a toy car balloon, and a smiling flower balloon. Unfortunately there some that weren’t able to fly due to strong winds.

The sun didn’t show up until late morn and though the first part of the main event was done, there were still various aerial activities that entertained the crowd.

Both local and international pilots’ exhibit they’re flying talents in different flying activities like balloon popping competition, in which the contestants were tasked to pop their balloons using their planes. Plane acrobatics also kept the crowd’s attention.

The sky was decorated with an array of kites as both young and old enjoyed their day by flying kites of various colors and designs. Booths scattered all over the ground to cater everyone’s appetite. There was a wide variety of food from the cheapest fast foods up to the sophisticated ones. The hangar was also used as an exhibit of both the new and old aircrafts. On the outside, the army’s amphibian was also on display for civilians to get a photo opportunity. Vintage bicycles that was up for rent also joined the scene

As the day near its end, the breeze was still blowing hard, preventing the balloons to soar in the evening sky.

Everyone’s disappointed after the failed attempt to fly the balloons. The finale was a giant lantern show followed up by a display of the fireworks. Raindrops chased away the viewers and urged everyone to go home. It’s been a long day for us and still had a long way to go so we head out as soon as we are packed.