Michelle, Jeanne, and I went to the Clark Hot Air Balloon Festival last year and the experience wasn’t that ideal. This time around we were better prepared. A week ahead Mines booked hotel rooms (actually rather late since there were few choices left) and I bought tickets (also rather late since they have been pulled out from ROX. Luckily they were still available at SM/TicketNet). Aside from Glenn, Mines, Michelle, Jeanne, and me who were staying overnight, Roly and her friend Steve joined us for a day trip.
We left late and ended up having breakfast at the Jollibee at Petron NLEX Marilao instead of the planned breakfast at Cafe Mesa at Clark. At least Jeanne enjoyed seeing Jollibee. After a quick breakfast, we continued on along NLEX and took SCTEX to avoid traffic through Angeles since it was already late in the morning. The route took us right to the doorstep of Clark airfield where the balloon fest was.
Traffic wasn’t so bad and the parking was better managed compared to last year. We already had tickets but planned to use it for the next day, so we had to line up for tickets. Still, we breezed through and were inside quite quickly. Inside, it was the same: there were various military and civilian displays as well as food and shopping stalls. As before, it was crowded. There were people taking pictures, posing for photos, eating, shopping, flying kites (lots of kites!), and just milling around. But there was a cloud cover and it wasn’t so hot so it was way better.
After lunch, we left the airfield to check in at the Stotsenberg Hotel. It’s pretty nice looking but is weirdly laid out. It’s like a troop barracks with a central assembly courtyard that was converted into a hotel. The rooms which aren’t so bad but they had windows facing the courtyard which means you hear people outside your room passing through and talking. Still, we’re not planning to use it much other than for resting so I’m not really complaining.
After a short nap and freshening up, we returned to the balloon fest to catch the night glow show. It was a good show, the balloons were lined up facing the crowd. Mood music was played while the balloon crew fired bursts of flame and hot gas into the balloons, lighting them up. The Darth Vader balloon glowing is especially cool. Too bad I wasn’t able to catch pics of it.
After the show, we had dinner at Mequeni at Holiday Inn. The staff was pretty nice, accommodating our requests for table rearrangements (twice) and serving us clam chowder soup because of the delay with our order. The food however is just so-so. I guess the only reason why they were in the official Clark marketing website is because they’re located at the Holiday Inn which is one of the bigger establishments in Clark and probably one of the site sponsors.
After dinner, Roly and Steve went off back to Manila while the rest of us went back to the hotel for much needed rest.
The next day, we went to the airfield early to catch the balloons take flight. It was just almost 5AM but the parking area was already crowded and a huge throng of people was headed inside and to the flight line. We were able to get near enough and avoided ending up filling the bottom half of our shots with too many raised hands holding cameras and camera phones. Jeanne had a blast saying bye-bye to the departing balloons.
Went back to the hotel for breakfast, a short nap, and freshening up. After checking out, we did some duty free shopping at a nearby duty free shop. The prices were just a bit lower than S&R but after paying, “non-members” like us had to pay extra charges. We ended up losing the savings. Now that’s crappy.
Finally, we headed out of Clark for lunch at C’italian Dining. Now this is dining! The restaurant wasn’t mentioned in the official Clark marketing website. Maybe because it was outside Clark (just), maybe because it was not backed by the establishment. That’s a shame because this restaurant is one of the best restaurants in the area and could easily be a good reason for visiting Clark. You should visit and definitely try their panizza.
After that gastronomic high note, we went back inside Clark, entered the SCTEX, and officially ended our trip to the Clark Hot Air Balloon Festival.
Where to next?
Had a great time with Jeanne, Jay, Mines, Glenn, Roly and Steve! Tiring but very worth the trip! Best part was eating at C’! We may not do the Balloon Fest every year but I’m already excited for the next visit to C’!
Oh! you forgot to mention that we were able to have a photo with Chef Chris plus the birthday cake he gave us! :)