Hot Air Balloons

Maybe the Chinese never read the Wizard of Oz.

              Had they done so, they would have known that 

              Hot Air Balloons are notoriously unreliable.

              After all, the Wizard of Oz took off from Kansas

              and settled in the Land of Oz.

              As they floated over Versailles in 1783, the Montgolfier

              brothers launched modern aviation. In their practical

              Hot Air Balloon, the brothers ignited the imaginations of

              many around the world. Their countryman Jules Verne certainly

              made careful note as he planned a trip around the world in 

              80 days featuring such vivid characters as the well named

              Passepartout and the vigilant Detective Fix.

              While the Wright brothers and Charles Lindbergh captured the

              world’s attention and Neil Armstrong took a step onto the moon,

              the Hot Air Balloon has maintained its position of fascination

              around the globe. Jules Verne’s 80 Days involved a great 

              bet on how long the balloon would take; a century later Steve         

             Fossett planned long and hard and took 13 days! Hot Air Balloon

             festivals are as popular as ever throughout the United States.

              Which is to say that the festive, upbeat even magical allure of

              the Hot Air Balloon took a big hit when the Chinese Balloon 

              bumbled into the airspace above Montana. No one, including the

              Chinese, knew what it was doing there but that is the thing about 

              Hot Air Balloons. Let us hope that the Wizard of Oz will reappear

              to restore order.