Quito.- More than 20 hot air balloons filled the sky of the Middle of the World, the monument located in the north of Quito, capital of Ecuador, where the equatorial line passes, which divides the two hemispheres of the planet, in the International Balloon Festival that will be held during the next four days.
The fourth edition of this event, which is organized by the Prefecture of the province of Pichincha, is taking place in August, although in previous years it was held in December, with the aim of taking advantage of the summer vacations of students from the highlands, the national holiday for the commemoration of the first cry of independence in Ecuador, which will be next Monday, and the weather of this time.
“In December it was cloudy, and moving it to August allows us to enjoy what we are seeing: a clear sky. There was a beautiful sunrise at the Middle of the World and seeing how the sky is painted with colors with this sky is wonderful,” Paola Pabón, prefect of Pichincha, told EFE.
The provincial authority was very happy to have organized this festival again, especially after seeing that dozens of families began to arrive from 4:30 local time (9:30 GMT) to enjoy “a show that is the only one in South America”.
“We have managed to place the Middle of the World, Quito, Pichincha, in this international context of aerostatic festivals around the world,” he highlighted.
In addition, he assured that this event also contributes to reactivating the province’s economy, because not only those who work in the Middle of the World benefit from it, but also the surrounding towns.
“The residents of San Antonio, Pomasqui, Calacalí, Calderón will benefit because the pilots land outside the Middle of the World. And this allows the boys, the girls who could not buy a ticket, or who are not here, to also enjoy this wonderful spectacle,” Pabón detailed.
International Crews
The crews captaining the balloons are from Ecuador, Brazil, and Mexico. One of the pilots is the Mexican Mario César Orozco, who is in charge of balloon number eight, called ‘Grapes’, which arrived from the city of León. This balloon is part of the renowned aerostatic festival of León, an ally of the event organized by the Prefecture of Pichincha.
“It’s my first time. I’m very excited. The views are incredible. It’s going to be quite enjoyable. The weather is very favorable and we are going to enjoy it,” he told EFE.
Orozco assured that he has good references of the festival and that although he has heard comments about the weather conditions, this Friday morning he had no problem raising the balloon.
“People are very warm and eager to know these things. I invite them to come, (there are) good flights, good weather and many colors,” he pointed out.
In addition to hot air balloons, from August 8th to 11th visitors can enjoy a varied program of parallel events, which will include gastronomic fairs, light shows and concerts throughout the day. National and international artists will participate in these, distributed by genres throughout the four days.
The Prefecture anticipates that up to 20,000 people will arrive at the site each day to be part of the Balloon Festival and the concerts that will extend into the night.
