Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Spring Break Saga: Chapter 4 Lengendary


Finally in Cairns, our last stop on the trip, but also the most exciting. We stayed in Cairns for 3 days and 3 nights at our sweet hostel Gilligan's. This place was the ultimate backpacking hostel I have ever seen. There was a club in the front and a bar in the back that was outside on a deck that looked over the pool. Also on each floor there was a kitchen and tables, a lounge, and a computer area. There were heaps of different people there, I would listen in on other peoples Skype sessions that were in all sorts of different types of languages while I checked my Facebook. Best of all, it was clean! There were clean towels and we were all pumped to shower and straighten our hair.

First night there we went to the WoolShed, our favorite hangout for the next three nights, and had a nice meal. Then we got to the partying. The WoolShed is a big bar and the drinks were pretty cheap, our group all sort of stayed together in one area and just had a good time. It turned out to be a late night but a fun one.

Next morning I woke up in a panic, I remembered what was in store for the day and then the fear set in. Today I'm going skydiving! A group of us signed up for the 12 o'clock time slot. Around 11:45 we wander downstairs to get some brekky before we go. Matty our tour guide told us not to eat, in fear of us throwing up (which was comforting to me, not!) but we did anyway. We get to the skydiving place and start filling out paper work. While we were doing this we got to watch Mouse's video from this morning, he went when he was still drunk and the skydiver messed with him and jumped out of the plane backwards and caught Mouse off guard. Again this didn't put me as ease. We continued to sign our lives away and then paid for it all, the skydiving, video and pictures, thanks mom and dad! lol I got fitted with some sweet pants and then got strapped into my harness...which I though was mighty loose! My skydiver was GJ, he was a bit older and short but a really nice guy, my fear must have been really apparent because he kept reassuring me that it would be okay. He would tell me "happy days" and he also tried to reassure me by telling me that this was his 4 jump today and that he has done it over 500 times. This made me feel a bit better but I still thought I was going to pee my pants! The car ride over was fun I almost forgot about what I was about to do, we listened to Allstar by Smash Mouth and we all sang along. We arrive at the airport find our dinky little plane. We pack ourselves in and then he starts clipping me to him. Then we take off and start climbing higher and higher. I said to him, "you know planes make me nervous" and he replies "no worries, if anything happens, we just jump out!" yikes!! The sights were beautiful though, we could see all of Cairns and the sugar cane fields. There were beautiful mountains that came right up to the waters edge. The water was blue and beautiful, I couldn't stop looking out the window. Since me and GJ were the smaller than the rest we were put at the back of the plane, and all the while the are shouting out codes to each other about the wind conditions and that it was all clear to jump. The door is pulled open and I was given some quick instructions on what to do and then all of a sudden people are jumping out of the plane. It was crazy to see, a group would be sucked out of the plane and it made a wooshing noise and the plane was getting lighter. Then its my turn, I'm the second to last to jump and now I was in a state of panic! I was breathing really deeply and kept trying to reassure myself. We scoot to the edge and he tells me to put my feet out of the plane, I try to tell him no way, but before I can he jumps out of the plane, and I go with him!!!!!! I scream my head off and then realize how amazing it is! You don't feel like your falling, but just suspended in the air. I'm trying to taken in the sights while I free fall, we free fall for 60 seconds which is the longest. Then I started to get nervous about when he pulls the chute, but he does and it all goes smoothly. I feel so accomplished of what I just did, but its still not over! He let me hold on to the chute and control it. We did 360 spins in the air and took in the sights, it was so peaceful. Then of course I started to get nervous about the landing, which again went smoothly. Then I was done and felt like I was on top of the world! So proud of my self and I wanted to do it again! I have video of it all and it is the funniest thing ever! The entire time I look like I just saw a ghost I am sooooo scared! After all that adrenaline I was spent, we walked around Cairns a bit but then went back to the place and took a nap. There was more extreme action ahead of us that night.

That night we went night bungee jumping. I didn't bungee jump, which I kinda regret now, but I felt I pushed myself enough for one day! The bungee was cool though it was over a lake and some people got dipped into the water! I still had a good time, a lot of us wussed out and so we drank tequila and laughed at all the terrified faces that were being shown on the screen before they jumped!

I wanted to get the whole three days in here, but it was way too long. I know no one would read it all, I know I wouldn't! So there will be one more chapter, Ill post it tomorrow! Sorry!

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