Sharjah to host balloon festival

UAE BALLOON Team and Sharjah Government will organise one of the dazzling displays of hot-air balloons at Sharjah skyline from Al Majaz Park from Dec.13-15.

The festival will also mark the World Lady Pilot Championship in which several international men and women pilots will take part.

The hot-air balloon festival coincides with the UAE National Day celebrations in Sharjah, Cap Aziz of UAE Balloon told The Gulf Today while participating at Zayed University's National Day celebrations in Dubai.

Team Manager Abdulrahman Naqi said there will be 36 balloons from different countries like U K, France, Australia, Italy, Germany, Poland, South Africa and the UAE. Around 40 international balloonists will participate with different types and sizes of balloons that will take visitors up in the air for a panoramic view of Sharjah skyline, he said.

The World Lady Pilot Championship makes the show more important as women balloonists are rare.

All intrepid visitors to the festival will be allowed to fly with their families in the air. "Kids will be taken up in the air for free in balloons with different shapes such as elephant or corn," Naqi said.

In addition, there will be many cash prizes and gifts for the visitors to the venue at Al Majaz Park in the heart of Sharjah near the scenic Khalid Lagoon on Dec. 13,14 and 15.

UAE Balloon is the first balloon festival in the Middle East. They currently have four balloons sporting the pictures of Sheikh Zayed, the UAE flag and other leaders, Capt Aziz said.

The UAE Balloon team has participated in international balloon festivals in Switzerland, South Africa, Poland, where they came out number one, Italy, Germany, Australia and Austria. Next week the team will participate in events in Denmark and Libya.

UAE Balloon is planning a new balloon depicting India, Aziz added. He, however, refused to say whose picture will be sported in the India balloon.

It is speculated that the picture of Indian national leader Mahatma Gandhi will be a preferred choice for the India balloon.