It's been a long time coming. I should have written this blog post months ago. But I just haven't found the words to describe the experience. I cannot put into words how majestic it was to be looking at these balloons lighting up the night sky.


Okay, I had mixed feelings about this event. I was not as amazed as I should have watching the balloons in the morning. Maybe it was the number of people overcrowding the whole field. The selfie stick trend was not helping in making me appreciate the moment. I was a little disappointed. I couldn't find the spot to get the pictures I pictured myself getting. There's something special about the hot air balloon pictures of Bagan, Myanmar and Cappadocia, Turkey. Maybe that's because you can't see any people or selfie sticks overshadowing the flights of the balloons.

Underwhelmed with less usable photos and less memorable experiences, we got out of the flock and tried the other events happening around the field. I tried darting and won myself a piece of a sweet heart candy.


Then we went a little farther from the venue and ate lunch at SM Clark Pampanga. We stayed there for a long while, played billiards and belted out, karaoke style. We just decided to go back when it's nearing sunset, because we wanted to really get into the festival's mood. We saw a few parachutes flew into the skies as the sun was starting to go down.



We took a tour of the planes (both old and new) being displayed at Clark Field. The interns who hosted our tour were very approachable. They were saying things that I didn't actually give much attention to because I was busy looking around the area. It was my first time staying that long on an actual runway. At one time, there was an a plane that hovered down the runway. That was one of my coolest experiences, to date.














Hours went by and the number of people just started to worsen. There are more selfie sticks than I have ever seen my whole life. So, I took the initiative to roam around and find a good shooting spot. Alas I found one and I got a single usable shot to remember this day.

Indescribable. The magic created by the balloons lighting up the dark skies was indescribable. I'm glad I've stayed through the whole thing instead of going home. This was definitely one of those "worth it" moments. As the cold air brushed up my skin and the burning fuel gave me this warm fuzzy feeling, I slung my camera back to my shoulder and just felt the moment. Because that was the moment I've been waiting to experience. Seeing those balloons took the crowd in a different level of what a romantic moment should feel like.

I went home with a new experience. Yes, social media taken too far can hinder you from getting the best experience. But sometimes, you just got to learn how to take the initiative to make a move. Go far from those people and be in your own bubble. Separate yourself from the world and make it seem like it's your own moment to enjoy, so, nothing can ever ruin it for yourself.