Wednesday, Sept 8 (the most epic day of my life): I LOVE QUEENSTOWN!! It is called the adventure capital of the world and I now know why!! It is also the most beautiful town I have ever seen, nestled next to Lake Wakatipu and surrounded by the Remarkables mountain range.
So my next step in life - learning to fly. Also known as BUNGY JUMPING!!! Life somehow keeps getting better. Here is the story... We were freaking out all day thinking of jumping. After we paid, there was no backing out. I have discovered that I am very internal when it comes to nerves. The other girls were openly freaking out all day whereas I was mostly quiet and shaky.
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| Ready? |
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| On our way to the platform scared out of our minds |
A.J. Hackett is the Father of Bungy Jumping. He launched his own company, AJ Hackett Bungy, and created a site on the Kawarau Bridge in 1988 to become the world's first commercial public bungy. He later expanded his company by founding bungy sites all over NZ and the world. We decided to experience A.J. Hackett's Nevis Bungy. We had to catch a bus that drove us through private land to get to the amazingly beautiful canyon. The platform lies on a cable 134 metres above the rugged Nevis River and is the third highest bungy jump in the world. After we got our bungy gear on we watched some people jump before us. From the lookout we were standing on we couldn't even see how far they fell. We couldn't believe we were about to do something scarier than we could have ever imagined. Then the pod came and shuttled us across the cable to the platform above the canyon. That is when I started hysterical laughing. Whenever I get punched in the face with pure emotion of any kind, all I can do is laugh. It's so crazy!
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| First up! |
I was called first to jump! It all happened so fast. The guys sat me down and put ankle straps and a weight on me. Then they guided me out toward the tiny ledge and BAM! Fear literally kicked me in the gut. Nothing could have prepared me for this. As I inched my way out, I began hyperventilating/ almost crying. I have never been more afraid - I was about to jump off a ledge into nothing. The guy kept urging me forward slowly. Finally after seconds of freaking out and deep breathing, all went quiet. I looked straight out to the mountains. I heard a man's voice somewhere far away count 3...2...1...bungy... Then I closed my eyes and SCREAMED!! I free fell for 8.5 seconds. For those seconds my mind went completely blank. I think my brain shut down! Then I opened my eyes at the bottom of my jump so close to the water! After two springs I released my legs so I could sit up right. When my brain started working again I looked all around me. It was so quiet. It was just me and the bungy in the middle of a canyon dangling above a river in New Zealand. I fell in love with the moment. But too soon I heard the music from above as they pulled me up. I was shaking so hard from adrenaline and fear and awe and disbelief! I am so incredibly excited I did that! My life is changed forever!! Now I am living life after bungy jumping. So epic!!
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| The biggest jump of my life |
Then I got to watch all my friends make this life transition one by one. Courtney was next. She was pretty composed throughout the whole ordeal. Then Stephanie went which was hilarious! It took so long to convince her to jump. For a moment I thought she was either going to back out or throw up. But eventually the guy counted down, her knees gave out, and she just fell off the ledge. Then Cathy was up! She was very scared and flailed the whole way down.
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| After bungy hug |
This was such a bonding experience - seeing each other in the most intense emotional state ... fear. And I love how each of us reacted so differently to the same level of utimate fear. We all agreed I was "Most Bad Ass," Courtney was "Most Composed," Stephanie was "Biggest Freak Out," and Cathy had the "Best Exit."
That night our minds and bodies were completely exhausted. I think I released enough adrenaline for half year!! Then we heard exciting news - we have another week off classes!! Now we have to figure out what more we can do with our lives. Life after bungy is awesome!
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