August 29th, 2012 
Emily 
The traditional gift for a second wedding anniversary is cotton. Various websites recommend that couples buy each other plush bathrobes, 800-thread count sheets, or cutesy pillow covers.
For our second wedding anniversary, we were having none of that. (Although my husband, the consummate shopper, probably wishes I had bought him a bathrobe.)
Instead, we went on a balloon safari. There’s nothing cotton about it, but I have a feeling we will remember it longer than we would keep a set of sheets or pillow covers.
Check out our amazing photos:
Other hot air balloons.
The balloon’s reflection
The sunrise.
On the balloon. Yes, I am wearing some sort of unattractive poncho thing.
The view looking down.
The view looking up.
A herd of zebras.
Another balloon.
It was the kind of experience that made me think, “Oh yeah, this is why I follow my husband around the world, so we can do amazing things like this!”
If you want to go on a balloon safari, here are my tips:
- It’s really expensive- start saving now!
- You have to wake up around 4 am to get to the balloon in time for the sunrise, so don’t stay up too late the night before.
- The champagne breakfast after the balloon ride is surprisingly delicious.
- There are no bathrooms at the balloon launch or on the balloon. You’ll have to wait until breakfast.
Posted in 
Tags: 
Well done, Emily! All I can say is, “WOW!”
Amazing, Emily! Treasure it!
It looks amazing! Great photos. I want to go too…
You should, it was amazing! The champagne breakfast wasn’t half bad either.
Excellent pictures Emily. I especially like the first one, how you kept the color on the balloons and put everything else in black and white- it really emphasizes your subject. Do you Instagram? You should. I also love the reflection. Let’s see- I have a height issue and would probably need some champagne BEFORE getting in the balloon. Oh, and Happy Anniversary! You two have been through a lot already. Congrats on having such great commitment so early on…
Thanks, Julia!
I don’t Instagram, and I actually don’t know anything about it. I’ll have to check it out.
Instagram is another social media thing – you upload your pictures with tags like #hotairballoon, etc, and people can like and comment on your pictures. I like using it to get photography ideas. It’s an app for andriod/iPhone – you take the pic and send it out there via your phone.
Ahh, yes. I don’t have a smart phone, yet. I’m planning on getting one when we go back to the states though, so I will start Instagram-ing then!
Oh, my goodness! That is breathtaking! And your photos are gorgeous! It must have been a blast!
So cool. Your photos are gorgeous!
Some of them I even took with my point and shoot camera!
That looks amazing Emily, I am jealous! It looks like you and Ryan had an amazing time… good choice for an anniversary celebration!
Yeah, we’re so lucky we could do this. I’ll never forget it!
What a great way to spend your anniversary! I’ve yet to take a hot air balloon ride – it appears to be exceptionally fun. That’s an incredible shot of the zebras!
Thanks, it was fabulous! If you’re scared of heights it might not be so good though!
That reflection shot is so clever, I love it!
Happy Anniversary guys!!
Thanks!
That is a much better anniversary present than cotton sheets or a bathrobe.
Love that you were able to see zebras during it and that sunset – oh my word, it’s gorgeous!
I know– it was amazing, I’m so glad we did it! The pressure is on for the 3-year anniversary though!
[...] of One Trailing Spouse and her husband celebrate their anniversary with a hot air balloon safari in [...]
Haha, far better a balloon safari than a bathrobe! I’d love to give something like this a try if only I could get over my fear of heights.
Yeah, it’s a little scary. I’m not usually afraid of heights, but I felt nervous (and a little bit nauseous) in the balloon.
Great shots! Nothing more peaceful then being up in the air! Congrats on your blog and anniversary.
i took a ballon trip over the Nile, not wild animals though
Thank you! Flying over the Nile sounds amazing, too. I wonder if you’re able to see people and villages during the ride?
Yes, we saw everything, even the exposed roof of most homes, one had a cow, don’t ask me how that happened!
First off, we were NOT supposed to cross the nile! haha. but the pilot messed up, lucky for us! it was awesome! then the van had to quickly drive to the other bank to find us. we ended up in a poor guy’s crops…they were kinda upset, understandably so. Very memorable ride!
here’s a pic of crops and shadow of the balloon
http://postimage.org/image/r1jvlanfj/
here’s a pic of my and lil brother over the nile
http://postimage.org/image/mplpw7zez/
Awesome photos- thanks for sharing! Yeah, it certainly sounds memorable. I can’t believe you ended up in someone’s crop fields!
i love your pix! do you use a basic photoshop, or a different software? i love the reflection one! great angle.
I just use iphoto, so I don’t do very much photo editing. My point and shoot camera actually has settings for highlighting one color and some other special effects, so I play with that a lot. I’d love to learn more about photo editing though!
well your pix are great. i wish i had a software to manipulate pix…i use iphoto too!
i used to be a photoshop addict, but i don’t have it anymore.
Yeah, I don’t have photoshop either, but that might be a good thing. I would probably spend hours playing with photos if I had it!