ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — It’s the largest ballooning event in the world and one of the most photographed spectacles, drawing hundreds of thousands of spectators over nine days to watch as pilots from around the globe take to the skies in colorful hot air balloons.

The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta kicks off Saturday with a mass ascension at Balloon Fiesta Park.

Fiesta attendees can walk among the inflating balloons and talk to pilots while scarfing down breakfast burritos and sipping pinon coffee. The roaring propane burners are not enough to drown out the cheers and whistles as the balloons drift upward.

The show is made even better by a combination of clear and cool mornings and a phenomenon known as the Albuquerque box: Different wind directions at different elevations all

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