In Dubai, fly with the falcons on hot air balloon
In Dubai, fly with the falcons Far from the skyscraper-dominated urban megalopolis of Dubai, a hot air balloon ride offers participants a bird's-eye view of the Falcon Kingdom. Just before dawn, the Hajar Mountains, about 20 miles east of the Arabian Desert, began to emerge from the darkness. I changed positions in the wicker gondola and watched in awe as the sun loomed over the silhouette of the limestone mountain range. To the east, the sky shone orange and purple, the light illuminating a sea of salty bushes, soft grass and wind-rippling dunes. A mi lado, el piloto, Mike Schaefer, un German corpulento y medio calvo con perilla canela y anteojos de montura negra, se volvió hacia su copiloto, Robertas Komza, un lituano flaco que acababa de volar por el desierto, y le ordenó que llévanos upper. Mr. Komza pressed a lever on a gas valve, sending a fearsome jet of propane-fueled flames into the 130-foot-tall hot air balloon. "Go up to 4,000 feet, then we'l...
