CHAPTER FIVE

ON THE OCCASION of the celebration of the new century, there was an

innovative

program of public ceremonies, the most memorable of which was the first

journey in a

balloon, the fruit of the boundless initiative of Dr. Juvenal Urbino. Half the

city gathered

on the Arsenal Beach to express their wonderment at the ascent of the

enormous balloon

made of taffeta in the colors of the flag, which carried the first airmail to

San Juan de la

Ciénaga, some thirty leagues to the northeast as the crow flies. Dr. Juvenal

Urbino and

his wife, who had experienced the excitement of flight at the World’s Fair

in Paris, were

the first to climb into the wicker basket, followed by the pilot and six

distinguished

guests.