Each balloon had 4 crew. Having got up at insane-o'clock, half the guys would take the previas to go pick up the clients from the hotel .. polished the windows etc. The others rallied in town and released helium balloons to decide where we needed to take off from in order to hit the target for the day. The basket would be tipped off the trailer and prepped and the envelope unfurled and stretched out. Then two guys would hold open the mouth of the balloon in front of some portable inflation fans to allow air in. Meanwhile at the other end the top of the balloon consists of a kind of parachute which is normally held in position by the hot air/pressure inside the balloon. This allows the pilot to let out hot air to sink etc. however this must be velcroed in place for inflation so the other two guys do that. As the balloon fills with air there is a joint effort to use the fans to spread the hot air around the balloon and at the other end the two guys pull really hard on the crown line (which runs from the top of the balloon) this all helps mixing and makes the balloon come up smoothly ... for Buddy's clients it's all part of the show. Smiles are then activated whilst random last minute tasks are completed and we help the passengers into the balloon, chat to them etc.

Releasing a helium balloon (last year - nicked from the Chase Lounge).

After take off, secondary objective was to go and get pastries for the passengers on landing. Primary objective was to get to the landing field before the balloon ..... at almost any cost. Driving for Buddy is a little different than you're used to. You're driving someone else's car so you're less worried about the odd bump, rock (and if you're me then multiple ditches :D) .. the police don't bother with us .. they know us and they can never be bothered to process all the paperwork after stopping a British driver in a Virginia or Florida registered car that's in Europe. With radio contact to your man in the sky you can safely take the racing line, overtake on blind corners etc. Highlights included lots of off road 4WD action, driving at insane speeds down tiny dirt tracks with zero visibility, screaming through a supermarket car park at 50mph beeping my horn, flashing my lights and screaming "scusi, scusi" out the window ... and of course the many 101-point turns .. or "austins"

... your average day in Siena .. a bunch of guys marching around other people's turf dressed like idiots, playing drums and waving flags. The reason we were in Siena was for the Palio. This is a horse race - sort of like a local derby that happens twice a year. Basically if you imagine two disgruntled neighbourhoods/communities like the classic eastsiiiide/westsiiiide thingy ... then multiply it by a lot you get the essense of the palio. Here there are 17 neighbourhoods or "Contradas" each with their own specfic enemy - and they really genuinely hate their enemies. You are baptised into a contrada at the same time as you are baptised into the catholic church over there. Membership of a contrada helps you get certain jobs and can ail you in other areas .. in that way I guess you could draw comparisons with the mafia. Anyway this festival goes back to the middle ages relatively unchanged. Only 10 horses can really fit on the track (hence the need for two races). It's unlike any other horse race I've experienced. The rules are in most cases that there are no rules. I often found myself at first saying to myself "but that's cheating" .. only to double take and realise that it's not .. it's just a different game. It's expected that everyone bribes everyone else, that the horses are drugged up to the gils (although recent rules frown upon this I don't think there are any checks) and that the jockeys (who themselves are considered a lower form of life) will block one another and hit each other with their whips. ... more later but this picture was taken on the first day of the festival. On this day the horses are given a test drive (so to speak) and the horses are assigned contradas by lottery. It generally ends up that everyone wants one of only a couple of horses and the packed out crowds will be elated if they pull the draw or will run around in tears beating their chests if their enemies get a good horse or they get a poor one ... etc etc. .. it's really quite funny to watch.

A scan of the scenes in the square just when the horses are drawn .. it must be exhausting to be this excited for 3 days :D

A scan from a Bombard postcard of one of our ballons over the duomo taken from another one of our balloons.

I picked up some postcards in the duomo instead of taking pictures .. the floor is only uncovered fully for one day each year I think.

Donatello's St. John the Baptist

It's easily one of my favourite buildings in the world .. everytime I come it's like some kind of release (I'm trying to refrain from describing the experience as being orgasmic ^_^ still that's what it was designed to do .. make us go weak at the knees in awe)

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