I could say "our first day at the fiesta dawned to great excitement" - but in fact we were up and going, and excited, well before dawn. Thank to Scott's hospitality we were in one of the VIP hospitality tents having breakfast at least an hour before dawn hoping (like thousands of other people) that the wind would subside so that the first mass launch of the fiesta would take place. Unfortunately the wind remained and the launch was cancelled.

After the morning chaos subsided we took the truck out to do some shopping chores and to visit James, Jessie and family (this is the family that kindly offered us their driveway as a camping spot). James is a Unimog owner and enthusiast and they live close to Albuquerque's Old Town. We visited with them for a few hours and strolled around the Old Town.

We made a point of being back in the parking area around 3:00pm in order to avoid the evening rush and chaos. By 5:00pm the wind was lighter and prospects were good that the scheduled Glow event would take place. A Glow is where balloons are filled with hot air, so that they stand up, and then the pilot fires the burner in a way that makes a bright yellow flame (the normal flame is blue). This flame illuminates the inside of the balloon and makes it look like a huge lamp shade. The spectacle is when hundreds of balloons do this in a coordinated manner.

We waited in yet another hospitality tent, drinking beer/wine and snacking on Mexican food, while the sun sank and the night darkened enough for the Glow to start. Once under way we walked out onto the field among the balloons with the 10s of thousands of other spectators. To say it was a breath taking display would be an understatement.

We got back to the truck just in time to lie on our bed and watch the fireworks display.