How a Hot Air Balloon Helped Me Overcome My Fear of Heights
Up in the air!
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Waking up at 4 am can otherwise be painful, but not when you have a hot air balloon ride awaiting you.
Still dreamy and sleep deprived, we tumbled into the back of the car and drove off to Goreme National Park – the site of the hot air balloon.
As the road unspooled in front of us, the disgraceful escapades of my previous high altitude flights were raked up as I remembered the lump in my stomach and the nausea that overcame me during free fall when I had sky dived in Mossel Bay, South Africa. I had sworn I would never do it again.
Well that was sky diving, I thought, and comforted myself. But then – the nausea during take off that I had recently experienced on my flight to Bangalore came rushing back. Yes, I am scared of heights, of roller coasters, of altitudes and everything that pits me against gravity.
But a trip to Cappadocia isn't complete without taking a flight up in that hot air balloon, I had been told. And to back out last minute didn’t seem right. We finally arrived. The Park was serene, all dark and all we could see were the humongous balloons being fired.
The Flight
We stepped into the hot air balloon. We were 15 of us in the basket with the gas generator between us, firing and powering the balloon. The balloon twisted and turned and finally launched. The noose was released, the fire generator became louder and it was time to go. The balloon started drifting. I could see the ground beneath me getting more and more distant. But as the balloon went higher, my worries multiplied. I swallowed my saliva and gulped some water.
Flight Minus the Fear
As we drifted, we got very close to the trees and then slowly floated above them. The balloon moved higher. Now the honeycombed hills and the picturesque vistas got closer. I could almost touch them. Soon we were 6,000 ft above sea level. The road was reduced to a miniature.
As we floated, I realised that it was indeed the most scenic flight I had taken – amongst the honeycombed hills that looked right out of a fairytale.
And the hundreds of colourful balloons drifting in the sky at the crack of dawn made this the most beautiful sunrise. I just wanted to stay up there, amongst those oddly shaped landscapes dressed in white.
The instructor kept changing altitudes, drifting close to the land and then again amongst the hills. I waited for that lump in my stomach, for that nausea to set in as it had done on previous occasions but this time it never did.
Why I Would Recommend it to Most
After an hour of drifting and floating in the sky, it was time to get back to the ground. For the first time, as the balloon descended, I wished this flight had never ended. There was an epiphany to be found amongst those towering structures that took us back into the Byzantine era, when an entire civilisation lived in caves formed by the honeycombed hills.
Beyond the Bosphorous and the Blue Mosque, this was another facet of Turkey!
I was glad to have mustered courage and taken that flight. The flight was important for two reasons – first, for the breathtaking vistas and second, for the win over my fears.
Two Cents for the Acrophobians !
The smooth drifting of the balloon ensures you get adjusted to altitude slowly and steadily. There is no nausea as the balloon moves gradually. Thus, if you too are battling acrophobia like me, I would say, ‘totally go for this one’!
(A freelance food and fashion blogger, Pranjali Bhonde Pethe aims at getting people and their favourite food and style closer through her blog moipalate. Email her at pranjali.bhonde@gmail.com and follow her on @moipalate.)
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