Bungy

What a glorious today was. We had a free day in Queenstown and I took the opportunity to cross jumping off a bridge from my bucket list. That's right, with some rubberbands and some courage I went bungy jumping. I went with three other people. The whole process was kinda funny actually. We were set to leave at noon, so I started my day with breakfast and doing some school work, and shopping. I walked to town a bit early with the other girl going so she could get some alcohol in her before she jumped. We got to a store front that served as the starting point for the jump. And I started freaking out a bit. There were pictures of jumpers on the walls, and a video of jumps going, and every time I looked at them my stomach dropped. We took a van from the store to the jump site. The Kawarau Bridge. The site of the first commercial bungy jump. The bridge is an old rickety suspension bridge over an impossibly blue river.

Not that high, right?

We arrived at the jump site and they took our weights and had us sign a paper, and told us to go the bridge. No safety instruction or anything. But once I got to the bridge I calmed down a bit. There was a lot of water under us. It looked pretty deep. I could jump off without a cord and survive. Probably. We stood on the bridge watching the people before us jump. The people before us? 12 year old kids. If they could do it, I could do it, right? The kids went off, with a little encouragement and maybe a push, and then they suited us up. They got our wave into our harnesses, the three of us, and then two German tourists. Our plan was for the guy in our group to go first, then the other girl, then me. But the operator checked each of our weights and said to me"Ok, you're up first". What. I weighed so close to the little kids that they wouldn't have to change the bungy cord over. Well, crud. I hadn't signed up for that. But I crossed the little barrier and sat down and they wrapped some towel around my ankles and tied me in. Let me tell you, the fact that you're attached by the ankles is the scariest part. What if my feet pop off! My ankles are scarily far away from the rest of my body. But they talked to me so I wouldn't have time to freak out, and then it was time. They had me step to the edge of this little platform that jutted out. Like a little platform too. And they had me get to the very edge. You can't walk with your ankles bound together, so I tried to hop, but I was afraid I'd overshoot and fall off by accident. I was planning on yelling "Blood for the blood god, Skulls for the skull throne, karee" because I'm a gigantic dork, but once I got to the edge the guy said, "ok 321 go". I went "crap I better go now, he counted down" so I yelled KAREE and jumped. But not really. I didn't do the graceful swan dive like I was planning. I freaked out and aborted the jump and did this weird little thing.


The fall was really scary. Because you're legitimately free falling, And the ground is accelerating towards you. But once the bungy catches you and slows you down its actually pretty pleasant. Until it pulls you back up and you have to free fall a second time. But after that it was fun too, just bouncing around. They send out this little raft and extend a pole for you to grab on to. And then they pull you in the boat and unhook you and send you on your way.

Overall it was super fun and I would do it again in a heart beat. Maybe sky diving will be next. We'll see.