Balloons and new friends

We spent last weekend in the balloon capital of the world: Albuquerque, NM! Its annual balloon fiesta is the largest in the world, with hundreds of hot air balloons ascending together in a week-long series of events. Albuquerque is over five hours away, so we didn't get to stay long -- we arrived late Friday night and left on Sunday after lunch. 

Early Saturday morning, we woke up before dawn and inched through horrendous traffic to the park where the fiesta is held. (Next year, we'll definitely consider walking the couple of miles from the SA house to the park -- it took us almost an hour and a half to travel that distance by car.) Here we are just outside the park as the balloons were starting to fill the skies.

And later on, as more and more took flight.

Down on the field in the middle of the park, we had a great close-up view of the inflation & take-off process.

Besides the balloons, a major highlight of the trip was hanging out with the Albuquerque Service Adventure unit! Daniel and I knew the leaders from our orientation this summer, but the participants had never met before. They got along great, though.

Hanging out in the park, watching the balloons, exploring, drawing, and feasting on Sondra's homemade cinnamon rolls.

Later that day, we spent some time getting to know other parts of the Albuquerque area. We drove to an overlook called Sandia Crest. Albuquerque is similar in elevation and climate to Colorado Springs, and this overlook was situated at over 10,000 feet. 

Aspen trees are the closest thing we get to fall colors in our region of the mountainous west, and while they're nothing compared to the crimson-sunset-rainbow splendor of the east coast, the golden yellow leaves shimmering in the breeze are still worth appreciating. It's hard to tell from this picture, but you can see glimpses of a few on the left.

Then we spent a bit of time exploring downtown ABQ, enjoying its cute adobe buildings and vibrant colors.

So much fun to see our two groups becoming friends.

The unit house was cute too, and its neighborhood looked like the epitome of southwest desert life. All adobe houses of different-colored earth tones, with cacti and other desert plants decorating the arid landscape. I was glad to see that many of the families in this neighborhood didn't try to pretend that planting grass was worth it; instead, we saw lots of dirt and gravel yards, and even a few that were full of tall brown prairie grasses.

Another quirk of ABQ: Lots of people decorate their porches with bunches of dried chili peppers. I even saw chili pepper-patterned clothing on multiple occasions.

It was interesting to experience a small taste of life in Albuquerque, especially while thinking about the fact that Daniel and I deliberated for quite a while between the Springs and ABQ in choosing our location for our time with Service Adventure. Both are incredible cities with a lot to offer, and I still think we would have had a great time in Albuquerque. But I didn't feel any sense of regret or missed opportunity. Instead, somehow, I felt sure that I am exactly where I'm supposed to be. I can't imagine not being in love with the Rocky Mountains and Colorado life, or not knowing my four awesome housemates. 

It was good to be there, and it's good to be home.