Stories and Essays / Turkey

How Some Balloons Almost Got Me Shot

It began simply, with a twist of the fantastic. We were walking along the Moda Seaside on a chilly Sunday afternoon, taking pictures and chatting and generally enjoying each other’s company.

And there they were, shimmering in the gray. Rows and rows of brightly colored balloons.

Moda Balloons

They were irresistible.

I ran over and motioned for my friends Lucy and Kivanc to follow. “Will you take a picture of me in front of these balloons? And then I can take pictures of you.”

Lucy is used to this, by now. I ask her constantly to stand in front of pretty walls, colorful backgrounds. She’s a good sport and doesn’t mind indulging my color mania, so she grabbed my camera as I positioned myself in front of the colorful balloon blobs.

Katrinka and Balloons

And then, Kivanc muttered urgently, “You have to move. RIGHT NOW.”

I didn’t understand what was so pressing and I wanted to make sure we got the picture. Then I realized there was somebody pointing a gun at me.

Oh God.

I jumped up in a panic and Lucy and I skittered to the side of the balloons.

POP.

POP.

The balloons where my head had been mere moment before exploded.

Popped Balloon

Apparently, this is a game. You can pay for the opportunity to shoot at rows of colorful balloons on the Moda Seaside. I don’t think the guns have bullets (it’s some kind of pellet, as far as I could tell), but it would still hurt to be in the line of fire. There’s no warning, though, so innocent (or ignorant) passers-by, like me, always have the chance of becoming collateral damage.

So obviously, we needed to try this.

Lucy with a Gun

It costs mere cents for five shots at the balloons and the man running this particular balloon game was eager for customers. After a few rounds and even fewer popped balloons, we discovered that, apparently, shooting balloons (and people) isn’t as easy as it looks.

Oh well. I still got my photographs AND I didn’t get shot by a gun-wielding balloon-killer. That’s a win overall, in my book!

Lucy and Balloons

8 Comments

  • Lisa Eldridge
    April 4, 2013 at 2:14 AM

    Great Blog entry! Full of great imagery, word choice and suspense. Love reading about your adventures!

    Reply
    • Katrinka
      April 4, 2013 at 11:46 AM

      Thank you! And thanks for reading, I appreciate it.

      Reply
  • enadworn
    April 4, 2013 at 6:33 AM

    Katie!

    This is great! Love the gun photo:)
    Keep up the beautiful work!

    Reply
    • Leonardo
      April 4, 2013 at 11:38 AM

      I’ve seen those balloon guys but I don’t get the point 🙂 If you enjoyed it then it should be a good thrill. Keep the posts coming.

      Reply
      • Katrinka
        April 4, 2013 at 11:45 AM

        I didn’t get the point either, until this! Since then I’ve seen people shooting at the balloons rather frequently. You should try it sometime!

        Reply
    • Katrinka
      April 4, 2013 at 11:46 AM

      Thank you so much 🙂

      Reply
  • Kıvanç
    April 4, 2013 at 3:18 PM

    Absolutely awesome!

    Reply
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