Catching a glimpse of the Taj Mahal was the highlight of the hot air balloon ride as part of the Taj Balloon festival in Agra
The first time I saw the Taj Mahal, I was a kid, barely seven or eight years old. The majestic building towered high above me and I remember looking up in awe at its marble minarets and the beautiful dome with its four smaller chhatris. But even then, I had not imagined that years later, I will get an opportunity to admire its beauty from miles above. The opportunity came in the form of the Taj Balloon Festival 2016, conducted by SkyWaltz in association with the Uttar Pradesh Government. This was the second edition of the six-day festival held between November 25 and 30. With participation of 15 balloons from different countries including India, the USA, UK, Belgium, UAE, Netherland, Turkey, Switzerland, Sri Lanka, Poland, and Malaysia, I knew this would be a sight to behold in the sky.
The night before
Our hot air balloon ride was to take place in the morning, but we were told that to watch them at night, was a spectacle we would not forget. So we left the comfort of our hotels and headed out in the chilly night to the PAC grounds where the hot air balloons had been lined up. And what a sight! Fifteen balloons, some regular shaped and three special ones, featuring characters such as Happy Egg, Bob the Lobster and Smurf, were hovering some 20-feet in the air, tethered by ropes. The burners, using propane gas were sending hot air inside the balloons, making them rise up in the air.
The brilliant glow from the burners made the balloons look like magical creatures floating in the air and we watched amused as the pilots gave joy rides to members of the public. Excited now about the prospect of flying early morning, we retired early to bed that night, hoping we don’t miss out on catching our balloon ride a la Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz.
Hot stuff!
“Do you know how to bend your knee?” Koen Audenaert asked us. When we replied in the affirmative, he said, “No, show me.” Two quick questions followed, “Can you hold the basket?” and “Can you turn around?” Satisfied with our replies and the actions that followed, the pilot from Belgium finally let us step inside the hot air balloon basket, which we were happy to note, was our favourite cartoon character, the Smurf!
We had managed to wake up on time, so much so that we even managed to watch the balloons being filled with hot air in order for them to take off. Now, finally we were inside the basket, waiting to take off. The pilot got a go-ahead and we were afloat! The slow ascent in the air coincided with the sunrise and before we could exclaim in wonder, Koun exclaimed, “Look behind!” Amidst the tiny houses, the Taj Mahal came into view in all its pristine glory and there was pin-drop silence in the basket, which we were tempted to break by exclaiming a cheesy ‘Wah Taj!’, but didn’t — why spoil the moment? We asked Koun, who has been a pilot for almost 28 years now, about his experience and he simply said, “It’s special.” We were almost a thousand feet in the air now and could clearly see the children running below and shouting or waving out to us. The houses were soon out of sight and the green fields took over. We wondered aloud how the pilot steered the balloon and he told us that it goes where the wind takes it. “What we can control is the altitude with the help of the propane gas,” he explained. We were up in the air for almost an hour and soon, it was time to touch the ground.
Touch down
On Koun’s instructions, we bent our knees slightly and held on tightly to the rope handles inside the basket, in preparation for the touch down. Luckily for us, the retrieving crew was following close behind and strong hands held on to the basket as soon as we touched the ground.
Along with them, there were hundreds of curious villagers, mainly children, who came running out of nowhere. Curious eyes took in the balloon and the apparatus in the basket. We had landed in the village of Kolara Kalan, some 20 kilometers away from Taj Mahal. “Can you ask if they would like to help?” Koun asked us and we translated it to the villagers in Hindi. Of course, they would! The villagers helped the crew members in gathering up the balloon and loading the basket in the retrieving van. “Thank you all, it was really very kind of you,” Koun said with folded thanks. As a gesture of thanks, everyone gathered around the pilot for a photograph. As for us, we clicked a picture too, of a day that will remain forever ingrained in our memories.
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 "Taj Balloon Festival 2016")
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