Bungee Jumping!

Yesterday I went to Macau on a whim. It was my second time there and I thought it would be a good trip for the Easter holidays. We checked out the square, the ruins, and a few casinos.

Most importantly we went to the Macau Tower. After more than a few moments of indecisiveness, I decided to join my teammate on his quest to JUMP OFF 60+ STORIES. They say it's the world's tallest bungee jump!

Macau Tower.

We were one of the last people to make the jump that day. In fact, when we got to the top of the tower, there were no other people up there to jump. This actually kept me pretty calm- if I had seen someone leap off the ledge, I might have backed down.

They put on our harnesses and we went outside to get clicked on to the rope.

They actually used sturdier gear than just this... but you get the idea.

I was first.

Up until that moment I was not scared, but then they wrap your ankles together and you have to take TEENY TINY steps to the edge of the platform. They drop the rope over the side and you feel a weight tug at your feet and THAT'S when I started to have a minor breakdown. I peeked down at my toes and saw the tiny inflatable landing pad. 233 meters or 60-something stories is REALLY high up.

The staff started to yell a 5 second countdown. 5 - 4 - 3! 2! 1!!!

"NO NO NO NO NO!" I was shaking my head and hands back and forth. "I don't think I can do this!"

"The longer you wait, the harder it is. You're only making this harder on yourself." The staff was heartless.

Again, the countdown: 5 - 4 - 3 - 2 - 1!!!!

Before I could change my mind, I leaped out into the abyss.

For those first few moments, it's exactly like you would have imagined it. Your stomach drops as your body tenses up at the anticipation of landing onto solid ground. It felt like I was curled up in the fetal position- helpless and vulnerable (I watched the video and I was actually nicely stretched out). I couldn't say a word- I don't think I was breathing.

But then a calmness washes over you and you realize you are flying (yes, headfirst into the ground) and there's this moment of zen.

The cable system started to retract and on the bounce up, I pulled a strap that righted myself up so I wasn't hanging upside down. I sat through a few bounces and then was lowered to the ground. My legs and hands were shaking (or maybe it was the unexpected bounciness of the launching pad) and the staff unclipped me and I walked away and waited for my teammate to come soaring down.

I don't have any pictures or videos, so I will have to rely on my memory (or this blog post) but it was one of the most frightening moments of my life- making the decision to fall off a skyscraper.

Afterwards, we went on an almost-as-scary walk around the outer rim of the tower:

I'm hovering over empty space. Easier said than done.