In June, 2005, I took my first balloon trip. I was a little apprehensive as to what it would be like,but I was pleasantly surprised. Once I'd got into the balloon, I didn't even realise that it was rising, until I saw things moving away. At the end of the flight, the landing was smoother than some of the landings I've had at airports!

It was an early start - we met the minibus with the other passengers at the Ramesseum at 5.45 am, and drove to where the balloon was being inflated.
Deir el Bahari in the early morning light. You can clearly see the remains of the causeway linking the temples to the canal that was built to connect to the Nile.
The Ramesseum in the foreground, Medinet Habu in the middle, and towards the top of the picture, the canal dug by Amenhotep III leading from the river to his palace at Malkata can clearly be seen. It's fascinating to see the clear division between the cultivated land and the desert.
The temple of Seti I - probably the most undervisited temple on the West Bank. Behind the red wall to the top of the picture is the local cemetery.
The village of Qurna.

The road to the Valley of the Kings, winds through the desolate mountains. It really is an inhospitable place, and I do feel sorry for the tourists who go there in the middle of the afternoon, during the hottest time of the day.

This is the village of Gabawi where I now live. We landed quite close to the 'tip' of the village. It was an extremely smooth landing,with only one small bounce!

 


It was good to fly so close to where I live, as I have no photos of the flat from outside. I live in the flat with the large patio and shuttered windows.

The flight took about 50 minutes, and the landing was remarkably accurate, touching down on a road, about 500 yards from the flat - I could have walked back, but the car was at the Ramesseum.

The balloon trip was with Hod-Hod Suleiman, which is the balloon company that I would recommend - it has 100% safety record over its years of operation, unlike several of the other companies.