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Published: February 18th 2009
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15th February 2009 - BUNGY TIME & HUKA FALLS!!!
I woke up extremely early this morning, Bloody shoulder again - really need to go to the doctors to get it sorted as it seems to be getting worse. The rest of my room were still asleep so at around 7.30 I trundled downstairs to have some breakfast and use the internet. Nat woke up quite a bit later and came down for brekkie at around 9am. I can't say she was surprised to find me up and about!! After packing up, we checked out and were on the road heading for Taupo by 10am. It only took 2 hours to get there and I really enjoyed the drive. Loving the automatic car...especially for hill starts!! When we arrived we tried th cheapest hostel in town but it was fully booked so we moved onto the YHA which had rooms! Nat told a little lie and said we both had discount cards and we got teh rooms at a cheaper rate......nice hostel too!! We also bumped into the Hull guys again....unsurprisingly they were in the TV room watching a film...I mean, where else would they have been?!!
Our first job of
the day was a visit to the supermarket followed by lunch. I was nervous as I planned to do a bungy jump in the afternoon and so I stuck to a light lunch of fruit and yoghurt!! I aren't frightened of heights, but I had always said I would never ever do a bungy jump....looks like I had changed my mind!
It took around 15 minutes to walk to the bungy station after lunch. My belly had butterflies in but I was also excited. As we got closer we could see the platform jutting out over Waikato River. The water was a beautiful turquoise colour and the whole setting was stunning. This was the perfect place for a virgin bungy jumper!! I watched a couple of people jump off before I made my final decision. It looked ok...pretty high but there were no casualties so I thought I would give it a go! I told myself it would be fun and it was only 47 metres high after all. I tried to persuade Nat to do a tandem jump with me before I parted with my cash but she was having none of it though I could tell she
was tempted really. I was on my own!!
I geared myself up, paid the fee and then joined the queue on the bridge to jump off. You had to be over 45kg to be able to jump. I of course had no problem passing that test.....at least the ice creams have been useful for something. A chinese girl behind me however weighed in at 44.2kg. Instead of refusing her though she was told to put a jumper on or drink some water and then come back!! I thought it was a risky little game but she did as they said, came back and weighed in at 45.1kg. Bingo...she was in!! I was 4th in line to jump behind 2 guys and a couple of girls jumping tandem. I kept giggling as I do when I am nervous and the two girls jumping tandem at the front didn't help matters when they bottled it and wouldn't jump. Oh dear!
My turn and I stepped forwards through the gate, sat down and the guys strapped my feet to the bungy cord. Despite me telling them to take their time, it was strapped on in no time and I was told
to stand up and walk to the edge. Shit!! It was hard enough to walk to the edge with my feet tied together let alone imagine jumping off. The guy on the edge then told me to smile for the camera, put my arms up and jump. I just laughed!! He counted me down...3...2....1....JUMP!! And jump I did! I pretended I was diving off a swimming block like when I was younger. The fall was amazing. I did let out a few screams and whoops along the way as I touched the water before being pulled back up in the air only to fall towards the river again. My heart was pumping but it was so much fun and I absolutely loved it!! As I stopped bouncing I heard a woman shout to me from a boat below. I grabbed the stick she was holding up and I was then gently lowered into the boat where they untied me. The guy that untied me then radioed up to the top and told them to change the karabiner.....that didn't sound good but I didn't care. I had done my jump. They took the boat to the side and I climbed out
and set off walking back to the top. My heart was still pumping and my legs were a bit jelly-like but they soon settled down. There is another bungy from a cable car in Queenstown that stands at 138 metres.....one of the highest in the world!! Looks scary as on photos but after today I decided to give it some serious consideration!! Total Adrenalin Rush!!
I walked back to the top, met up with Nat who had watched my jump from a distance (only recognised me because of my special flowery shorts), and then went to the office to check out my photos and watch my DVD. Looked pretty funny and I was definitely vocal!! Photos pretty good too, except for the heiny shot!! I bought them...need proof of my adventures!!
Once I had everything and my legs had returned to normal we set off to do a 2 hour walk alongside Waikato River to Huka falls. It was a nice walk if a little hilly and I really enjoyed it especially as teh sun was shining. The river was the nicest I have ever see mainly because it was so clear and a beautiful green/blue colour. Very
scenic!! Huka falls was worth walking to too. Such a powerhouse of a waterfall!! We stayed there for 5-10 minutes taking it all in and then walked back the way we had come. We stopped at one point where loads of people were swimming and relaxing in teh river. One couple even had a bottle of wine in the river with them. Turned out the Geothermal business was up to its old tricks and that section of the river was like a hot pool. Cool!! We got in for a bit to chill out. It wasn't as hot as I expected and was a mixture of hot and freezing cold depending upon if you moved an inch to the left or right. Weird but nice!!
At around 5.15pm we set off back to teh hostel before heading out to happy hour again at around 6ish. Don't confuse happy hour with a pub...oh no...our happy hours these days are at internet shops. $2.50 per hour if you log on between 5 and 7!! Back of the net!! We spent a couple of hours updating the blogs before heading back to the hostel. I was so tired...too tired to cook tea
when I got back and so I made a brew and grabbed my grapes out of the fridge before settling down in the TV room. The Hull guys (Bobby and Dave) were in the TV room again surprise surprise, and luckily for me they were just putting 'Man on Fire' on. I had wanted to see it at the flicks when it came out but had never got around to it. I watched the first half hour and the last 5 minutes because despite my best efforts, I fell asleep. Nat couldn't believe I had fallen asleep and was deeply disappointed in me!! I was a bit gutted myself as it seemed like a quality film but hey.....when a girl is tired, a girl is tired!! Once the film had finished we went back to the room and I was asleep as soon as I put my head on the pillow!!
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emma booth
non-member comment
catching up
hi debs hope your well just catching up on your blog been so busy with work and grace etc... not had time but laid in bed now with flu so thought i would take the time looks like your having such an amazing time can't imagine you'll wan tot ever come home! but were all dieing to see you xxxx