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ÜRGÜP, August 12 (FENA) - For most of the year, the early morning hours before dawn are the most dynamic part of the day in Ürgüp and the neighboring towns of Turkish Cappadocia. It is the time when numerous vans transport tourists from hundreds of local hotels and apartments to the valley where 150 to 200 hot air balloons are being prepared for a new flight.
Waiting for the sunrise in balloon baskets over the colorful Cappadocia valleys is an unforgettable experience that makes it worth getting up very early (around 4 a.m. in the summer) to be on time at the airstrip, where well-coordinated teams prepare balloons and baskets that accommodate 15 to 25 passengers. Whether the "flock" of balloons will rise depends solely on the weather conditions, primarily the wind. And these conditions are mostly good in Cappadocia since this region has around 260 sunny days a year.
''It sounds better when we tell tourists that romance is why balloons take off just before dawn. It is true, however, that the weather conditions are ideal precisely at that time of day and that is why we fly early in the morning,'' the tour guide, Şükrü Seçkin, said.
Waking up early is not a problem for tourists, because many of the several million who visit Cappadocia during the year do not miss the experience of a one-hour balloon flight. Places are reserved much earlier and from all parts of the world, from Japan and China to America and Argentina.
The dose of excitement and adrenaline rush since you are flying and floating in open baskets is complemented by an incredible view of the Cappadocia valleys where volcanic eruptions and tectonic movements long ago formed rocks that are impossible to see anywhere else. They are also called fairy chimneys, widespread in the Valley of Love, Valley of Pigeons, Zelve, Valley of Monks...
At the beginning of the flight, all passengers get information how to behave in order to avoid any unpleasant situations. There were not many of them in the past more than three decades that this tradition has lasted. However, after two bizarre accidents, the authorities decided to take over the control and regulation of balloon flights in Cappadocia, which resulted in an almost complete exclusion of safety risks. The agencies that provide hot air balloon tours in Cappadocia rounded off this interesting adventure by awarding medals or diplomas for successfully surviving the flight to all passengers. After landing, passengers drink champagne and give a toast to the success of the "mission". There is hardly a better occasion in the early hours to raise a glass of champagne.
Cappadocia includes parts of the cities of Aksaray, Nevşehir, Niğde, Kayseri and Kırşehir, where there are also a couple of airports through which most tourists come to this colorful region that is not administrative but is certainly a natural and historical place.
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