Today, we took a morning flight from Wellington to Queenstown (only about an hour long) to begin our 10-day trip around parts of the South Island. I was fortunate enough to get a window seat, which I usually don't get excited about, but when the plane is flying over beautiful landscapes, snow-capped peaks, and rolling hills, the window seat is the best seat on the plane. We landed just after 10 am and got our rental car organized for the time that we will be here; Davis quickly got the hang of right side driving and we cruised into town.
Queenstown reminds me of your typical ski-town, but there was something more warm about the place. Yes, there were a lot of tourists, but that didn't seem to take away from the culture of the town. It is small, and everything is within walking distance. From the lakefront to the hotels to the pubs, each place seemed unique and welcoming. However, the coolest thing about Queenstown is that it is surrounded by the most stunning mountains I have seen thus far. In every direction, there was a screen saver for your desktop, and the best part of it was that we landed on a beautiful day. A few clouds here and there, but the weather was crisp and sunny with no wind.
So...we have ten days. Ten days to do as much as we possibly can. We didn't waste any time. After we pulled into town, we popped into a bakery for a few pies and a coffee and then got to it. Davis went off on a gondola that took him to the base of a steep, rewarding hike. He said the views were absolutely gorgeous, with a full 360 birds-eye-view of the entire area. While he was trekking up the mountains, I was gearing up for one of Queenstown's biggest attractions: bungy jumping.
I have gone cliff jumping multiple times in the past, but that was a mere 20 or 30 feet. Today, I was scheduled for a 1:20 pm plunge off of a suspended cable car 404 feet above a canyon river. The Nevis bungy jump is the highest bungy jump in New Zealand, and I was feeling every nerve in my body on the bus ride to the site. The bus ride took us between huge cliffs and mountains, going off road to display amazing views into gorges and valleys. However, my amazement turned to butterflies when we finally arrived at the site. I had met a guy from Brazil, Bruno, who was also doing this for the first time and we tried to hype each other up while we were putting on harnesses. After we were geared up, we took a few pictures on the look out deck before being escorted into this tiny cart attached to the cable. They put the two of us in and said have fun, like it was just that easy. The cart began to move and carried us out to the middle of the canyon, where we unloaded onto a larger box with the bungy cords dangling below. The box was run by three guys (maybe in their mid 20s) and they were blasting rap music in the box as they swiftly attached weights and chords to us. Not even 3 minutes went by and they called up Bruno to head over to the ledge. They were working so swiftly and being so friendly, my mind seemed to concentrate more on the music that the sheer drop below. There was a little glass floor in the bottom of the box, so I watched Bruno's flailing body plummet 400 feet below me before getting ripped back up and dropped again and again. Yea, I was terrified, but committed, and I didn't see a point in procrastinating this. So they called me up, strapped me in, and moved me to the ledge. When they counted 3...2...1, I took a swan dive off the ledge without even thinking twice. Holy s**t, holy s**t, holy s**t. The entire canyon was zooming past me and that stomach feeling was shooting through my chest. After about 8 seconds of crapping my pants, the bungy chord began contracting, all the blood went straight to my face and I got tossed back up again. The next few bounces were not as scary, and it was awesome to see over an entire rock canyon while hanging upside down. They reeled me back up and high-fived me. I got a bear hug from Bruno, who had a huge smile on his face saying he was going again. I changed my underwear, took a couple breaths, and thought, "eh, might as well do it again".
The second time around was less scary, but still absolutely horrifying. I did, however, leap up much higher and and spread my arms much wider than the first time, which made me feel like I was actually flying. Okay, not flying, but I felt a bit more in control as opposed to plummeting towards earth. Nothing has even come close to the adrenaline rush that this inspired. If I wasn't an adrenaline junkie before, I sure am now, because that was the coolest thing I have ever experienced.
I enjoyed the ride back, parted with my friend Bruno, and headed straight to one of the most renowned burger joints in New Zealand, FergBurger. The burgers lived up to the hype and I enjoyed a few well earned beers with my meal. Afterwards, I got ice cream and walked around the lakefront, scoping out cool restaurants and cafes before meeting back up with Davis. I guess you could say it was a kickass start to what will surely be the trip of a lifetime.
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