Valley turns into myriad of colours...

Araku (Visakhapatnam): The Araku Valley, normally the haunt of tourists looking for a weekend getaway, boasted of a riot of colour as the second edition of the Araku Hot Air Balloon Festival got underway here on Friday.
Capturing the 360-degree view of the valley, green farmland and waters bodies in and around Araku Valley while flying on high standing inside a basket tagged to hot air balloons with clouds sailing overhead was an unforgettable experience for some visitors, tribal folk and tourists.
Pilots from 15 countries, including two from India, Brazil, Italy, Germany, Australia, France, Belgium, Brazil and few others showcased their flying skills during the first day of the three-day festival amid loud-cheers of the locals and visitors at Araku Valley in the Visakhapatnam Agency area.
The morning session of the first day of the festival featured 18 hot-air balloons, belonging to different countries and shapes and colours. Interestingly, peopled enjoyed watching the balloons going up away than the people who took to flight in the balloons.
Tribal students along with the Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA), Paderu, project officer D K Balaji went on the first balloon flight followed by the tribal womenfolk along with the AP Tourism Department officials on Friday.
The first balloon was scheduled to fly around at 7 am on Friday but due to foggy weather conditions, the event was launched at 10 am, according to Samit Garg, CEO of E-Factor Entertainment, which was chosen by AP Tourism Department to organize the event.
“It is an unforgettable event in my life. This was my first hot air balloon ride,” says L Mohan. “Though I was scared while the balloon was taking off, I enjoyed the panoramic view of the valley during the flight. There was no feeling of speed and I felt as it was stationary thousands of meters in the air,” he added.
“Though we have been staying in Hyderabad for past two decades, we never saw hot air-balloon festival. We enjoyed a lot as the balloons soared and the para motoring display with the aerial enthusiasts floated in the sky,” said K Sangeetha and K Sowmya, two visitors who attended the fest. However, the sisters expressed disappointment at not getting the opportunity to fly in the hot air balloon.
Johan Vander, a pilot from Belgium, said ballooning was a non-risk event.
“The balloon flies with the simple law of physics that hot air is lighter and goes up. There is no engine fitted to the balloon. It simply flies with the help of wind. The only difficulty with ballooning is starting and landing-- as sometimes we can’t determine the direction the balloon will take. That depends on the wind’s direction,” Vander added.