Friday 10th April
I’m not really into extreme sports (or any sports actually) but Queenstown is all about extreme activities, which I am aware aren’t actually sports, but I’ve already written sports and it’s too late to go back. So yes, I have never had any desire to thrown myself out of a plane or off a ledge, but today I began the first of my extreme, life threateningly stupid activities – I did a Canyon Swing! Because I’m a rubbish planner I ended up being in the later group, so I wasn’t with Pete, but I was with a bunch of really nice people from my Kiwi Experience bus, so it all worked out pretty well... Anyway, we met at the offices, got weighed in (my favourite part obviously) and then we headed up to the Canyon. On the way we watched a DVD that showed you a few different ways to jump off the platform, so I decided to do the Backwards Jump and the Gimp Boy Goes to Hollywood Jump. Apparently they are the scariest ones and I figured that if you’re going to do it you might as well do it right! When we got to the centre we got our harnesses on and went down to the platform/ledge thing – it’s quite big, everyone stands there and waits for their turn, so it wasn’t a rickety plant of wood or anything! I decided to go first, because if I didn’t go first then I thought I wouldn’t go at all. The guy that took us up to the Canyon Swing was called Paddins, he was actually really nice, the kind of guy I would be pals with – so he got me all ready to go and held me over the edge backwards, which is quite a strange sensation... They mess around with your head on the Canyon Swing, they try to scare you and they like keep pretending to let go of the harness and they act like you’re not strapped in, which is actually quite good – I like a bit of banter myself.
Once I did my, smile for the camera/try to look pretty while you hang backwards off a ledge pose, the boys basically let go of me and you just start falling backwards. I actually feel more scared writing this then when I was actually there! It wasn’t scary, it was just a bit strange – you feel really disorientated because you’re falling backwards and then once the freefall is over you swing for a bit and then they pull you back up again. It was actually really cool, it didn’t scare me and while it was exciting, it didn’t make my heart race – I was creepily calm about the whole experience, so much so that I decided to do it again! This time I did it upside down, which was an even weirder experience. You get strapped in and they suspend you in the air, over the canyon, in the sitting position. You then have to wrap your legs around the cord that is suspending you and you arch your back, so you are sort of in a ‘C’ position. When I was in the proper position I looked down at the ground and then you realise just how high the ledge actually is... But I didn’t have time to think about how high up I was because Paddins decided that instead of waiting for me to say “I’m ready” that he would just pull the cord in the middle of our conversation! It was all over so quickly and before I knew it I was swinging around the Canyon and then I was back in the jump area! That split second when you can see the ground is quite strange – it’s not something your body is used to!
When we all got back from the Canyon Swing a big group of us decided to go Luging, which is amazing! We took the Gondola (basically a Cable Car) up some random mountain in Queenstown, I don’t actually know the name of it, but it’s a bug mountain that has a Luge track on it, so you won’t miss it if you’re ever in Queenstown! When you leave the Gondola you take a ski lift to the very top of the Luge track where you get the actual Luge – it’s a New Zealand invention, apparently, but then again, they say that they invented everything, anyway, it’s pretty much flat to the ground, it has three wheels and you steer with handles like you have on a bike. You pull the handles back to go faster but you try to keep it in the middle because if you pull it too far back then you start to brake and if you push the handles too far forward then that acts as the handbrake and you will flip over the handles. Sound like something you would be interested in? They have to tracks, a “Scenic” track and an “Advanced” track – you have to do one “Scenic” lap before you can go on the “Advanced” one, so we tore around that one and then had a go at the “Advanced” track. We had paid for 6 laps and each time I got more confident, I started going really fast and overtaking people, I even won the girls race! Then on our 7th go, (we all snuck through on one ticket) I started to get super confident and I was so close to winning... but then I totally wiped out on one of the corners. I don’t really know what happened, I think I just went too quickly and then hit the side, but I ended up coming off the Luge and skidding along the curb on my stomach. As soon as I stopped I got back on the Luge and finished the race, not in first, but maybe 3rd or 4th? Then I checked my tummy... it was quite gross, it was like a big graze on my tummy – I also ripped my shorts and grazed my knee – but it was totally worth it! Luging is soo good, maybe I will introduce it to Northern Ireland!
After our exciting outing I got myself another Fergburger. Do you see a theme emerging? Tonight I went for a Tropical Swine – which was “Prime New Zealand beef, American streaky bacon, edam cheese, pineapple, lettuce, tomato, red onion, aioli and tomato relish.” Again, I gave the tomato and red onion a miss and It was so, so, so yummy! The pineapple goes really well with the tomato relish, flip, I’m getting hungry thinking about it! After Fergburger I met up with my friend Richard, we met on the Gap year website (gapyear.com – very original) and we got chatting on Facebook. We went for a wee walk to Dirty Bird (KFC) and then we headed to Starbucks where we got hot chocolate and those yummy caramel waffle biscuits, there Dutch and there sooo yummy, especially with hot chocolate! We just sat and chatted, which was really nice and I went home (how strange, I’m calling a Hostel my home) and went to bed! Lovely!
Xx
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