The Savannah Scottish Games and Celtic Festival took place this year on May 4. It was a beautiful day despite a short rain shower in the middle of the day. We arrived in time to see the Pipes and Drums Band enter the field for the opening ceremonies.
The festival was held on the beautiful grounds of historic Bethesda Academy. Ancient live oak trees dripping with Spanish Moss surrounded the event area.
I have Scottish ancestors on both sides of my family so we stopped to check out the genealogical tent before wandering around to see the rest of the activities.
Border Collie demonstrations, Highland Dancing competition, and Celtic music performances were all taking place at the same time as the Heavy Athletics. Oatland Island Wildlife Center had a presentation of Birds of Prey where we saw Wassaw, a rescued American Bald Eagle. There were also food trucks, kids activities, and vendors selling many different Scottish items.
Border Collie DemonstrationHighland DancersWassaw, a rescued Bald Eagle from Oatland Island Wildlife Center, Savannah
The Scottish Heavy Athletics competition featured feats of strength and agility. Several different competitions were taking place on the athletic field at the same time.
Hammer Throw
We enjoyed the day and arrived home in time to watch the Mystik Dan win the 150th Kentucky Derby.
The special shapes balloons are so much fun to see that they deserve their own post. Many of them were flying during the first two days I was at the fiesta.
My 3rd Day at the Fiesta Field
The Special Shapes Rodeo was scheduled for Thursday, October 12. Sadly, the balloons couldn’t fly because of high winds. Luckily for everyone it was safe for the balloons to inflate on the field and set up for a static display. There were many spectators walking through the field getting up close to these creative balloons.
Kelli and I had a great time walking through the field of balloons. We stopped to watch Kermie the Frog inflate. There were families and children looking up in awe at the the giant Frog. While I was capturing the activity of the crew setting up the balloon Kelli was busy handing out Evil Twin balloon trading cards to the kids.
Kelli also did some pin trading with some of the balloon teams while I was busy taking pictures.
After we had seen most of the balloons we headed for the vendors area to grab a bite to eat. I enjoyed my first ever Green Chile Hamburger – Yum! We wandered through the Artisan’s tent and then stopped to watch the chainsaw carvers at work. A dazzle of Zebra’s caught up with us for a final photo.
Attending the 51st Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is an event I will never forget. The balloons were spectacular and everyone I met was friendly, helpful, smiling, and having fun. I also enjoyed spending time with my brother Joe and his wife Kelli when we weren’t at the fiesta. We caught up on family stuff and enjoyed some amazing New Mexico cuisine meals together. Thanks Joe and Kelli!
I recently returned from the 51st Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. The theme this year was “A View from Above”. This was my first time at the fiesta and the theme for me was “A View from Below” because I chose to stay on the ground and look at the balloons above me and all around me.
More than 550 hot air balloon pilots and their crews gathered in Albuquerque, New Mexico from October 7 – 15, 2023 for this year’s event. For nine days balloon crews, volunteers and spectators got up in the middle of the night to be at the Fiesta Park before 6:00 a.m. I was one of the many spectators there to take part in this magical event.
My brother Joe and his wife Kelli were wonderful hosts while I was there. They live in the Albuquerque area and have been involved with the Fiesta since the 1990’s. Joe volunteers as a Launch Director each year and his wife is a balloon pilot. They are part owners of the Evil Twin Balloon with their friends Don and Connie. I chose a photo of their balloon as my header photo.
My first Day at the Balloon Fiesta
We woke up each day about 3:40 a.m. and left the house around 4:15. Joe had early morning Launch Director meetings and Kelli had pilot briefings.
Tuesday, October 10 was my first day attending the Fiesta. While Joe and Kelli were at their meetings I started the day by meeting the Evil Twin Balloon crew and being wowed by the glow of the Dawn Patrol balloons. What at great way to start the day!
Once the balloon crews started preparing their balloons for flight the field was filled with activity. As I walked around in search of my brother Joe there was so much going on I didn’t know where to look. Balloons were being inflated on the ground as others were launching into the sky. It was sensory overload as the clear blue sky filled with colorful balloons of many shapes and sizes.
Trying to keep up with a Launch Director
The launch directors are called Zebras because of their black and white striped shirts. Their job is to make sure the balloons take off safely. Once I found my brother Joe I had a hard time keeping up with him as he ran around the field giving the pilots the go ahead to launch their balloon.
I turned around to capture my brother Joe at work but when I saw him standing with his hand over his heart I knew they were playing the National Anthem even though I couldn’t hear it.
I was exhausted and my feet hurt at the end of the day but WOW! This day ranked right up there near the top of my list of memorable events in my life.
My second day: Working as a member of a chase crew
Wednesday morning we were up early and ready for another beautiful day of ballooning. I spent the morning working as part of the chase crew for the Evil Twin Balloon. Many thanks to Kelli, Don, Connie, Kelly and the rest of the crew for showing me what to do and allowing me to be part of the team.
Kelli and Don, the two pilots of the Evil Twin
Don was piloting the balloon that day. I started out by helping take the balloon out of it’s storage bag while Don and some of the others prepared the basket to be connected to the balloon. I watched as they inflated the balloon by blowing air from a powerful fan into the balloon. I captured a couple of shots of the inside of the balloon as it was being inflated. Don had two passengers that day.
When everything was ready and the launch director gave Don the ok to launch the Evil Twin was up in the air. The chase crew piled into the van to follow the balloon to wherever it landed. Kelli was driving the van and was in radio contact with Don. We were soon at their landing site. We helped get the balloon back into it’s bag, loaded everything into the trailer and were soon back at the Fiesta Park for a celebration and a group photo.
It was another WOW day at the Fiesta! I had a great time being part of the Evil Twin chase crew!
Coming soon! More fun and adventures at the Albuquerque International. Balloon Fiesta.
This May our wandering took us to the countryside in Georgia, to a baseball game, on a road trip to Virginia, and around our own neighborhood.
Georgia road trip
Our first trip was to the Georgia countryside. On the way to our destination we discovered a new to us barbeque restaurant in Portal where we tried their pulled pork and fantastic spare ribs. We enjoyed our time in the country where the wildflowers were blooming and the trees were showing off their new green leaves. We fed carrots to my brothers donkeys, walked in the woods, and had a fun visit with our 12 year old granddaughter.
Celebrating Henry’s birthday at a Savannah Bananas game
The Savannah Bananas sell out every home game so when I had an opportunity to buy two tickets for a game on Henry’s birthday I jumped at the chance.
We saw the team owner Jesse Cole outside the stadium so of course we stopped to meet him. Henry shook his hand, he posed for a photo with us, and wished Henry a happy birthday. The Bananas play a different kind of baseball called Banana Ball. It has different rules than regular baseball and the night is filled with entertainment during and between the innings. We were laughing and entertained the entire night.
Wandering Dawgs meet owner Jesse ColeThe team mascot SplitNever a boring moment at a Bananas gameHistoric Grayson Stadium
Around my Neighborhood
Flowers were blooming all around our neighborhood and in our own backyard. The header image is one of the gorgeous white blooms I captured one morning as I walked by the giant Magnolia tree in a neighbor’s yard.
In our backyard the Painted Buntings fed at my bird feeder almost every day. The resident lizard likes to hang out on the railing on our back deck.
Road Trip to Virginia
We traveled to Virginia to visit our daughter’s family for Memorial Day weekend. We spent the first night in a motel and had a nice visit with my cousin and his wife when we met them for lunch at a Cracker Barrel by the interstate before continuing on to our daughter’s house.
Being with our daughter and her family was the highlight of the trip. The weather was overcast, chilly and sometimes raining but we didn’t let the weather spoil our visit.
It was wonderful to see our Grandson who just finished his first year of college and our Granddaughter who just finished her junior year of high school. My daughter and I enjoyed a trip to the local farmer’s market where I picked up a frozen smoked trout to bring home and she brought home some beautiful fresh produce. Later that day we drove into the mountains, had lunch in the small town of Floyd, and took a ride on the Blue Ridge Parkway to Chateau Morrisette Winery.
Books
Our Book Club book for May was “The Measure” by Nikki Erlich. It was a very interesting and thought provoking story.
I also enjoyed reading “No Plan B”, the latest Jack Reacher book by Lee Child and “Still Life” by Louise Penney.
Wandering Dawgs 