BUNGEE JUMPING?! (August 25)

Haha - Favorite picture!

We originally planned to go drive somewhere on a day trip because James was home and we had a car. However, nobody could come up with a plan! We went out to “breakfast” around 12:30 (and I ordered all the different parts of a breakfast burrito and combined them myself – how do they not have breakfast burritos here?!) and didn’t get back home until around 1:30 or 2. Then we sat around. And talked about what we COULD do. And then we thought maybe we’d go mini golfing and bowling. And then I decided to look online – muahaha! Warning: if you ever type in “Adventure in ____” (for example, Glasgow, Scotland, etc.) you will end up doing something crazy. And that’s just what we did. I found a new bungee jumping place in Glasgow, right over the River Clyde. You jump off of the Titan Crane. There are only 2 bungee jumping places in Scotland, so with one being in Glasgow I couldn’t pass it up! Here's the Titan Crane: 

Titan Crane over River Clyde

Most of you know I have been skydiving twice, the second time backflipping about 10 times out of the plane. I’ve gone paragliding, parasailing, all that. But I’ve always been a little skeptical of bungee jumping because it seems like so much can go wrong. There’s one bungee, no backup. If it wrapped around you, you’d be a goner. If it snapped, same. It could be too long, etc. So many things. But when I realized I had the opportunity to do it today in Scotland, and read all of the raving reviews detailing how safe and great this place was, I was convinced. At 3:00, I called the place and was shocked that they said they had availability for 3 people! Now came the convincing. For the next hour and a half, I sat on the couch trying to convince James and Fiona. And then a half hour later, we were off!

Our "before" picture

Now keep in mind that when I got this grand idea…it had already started sprinkling. Okay no, Scotland’s version of sprinkling, California’s version of RAIN. So anyway, I thought HEY, if I’m bungee jumping in Scotland then so be it if it rains – it’s all part of the Scotland experience. And when I was planning on bungee jumping in the rain, I didn’t know I would be bungee jumping in the DOWNPOURING rain – it was raining harder when I jumped than it has yet since I’ve been in Scotland. Even the people running the place thought we were crazy. They made a point to let us know that rain doesn’t affect bungee jumping though, but wind does.

So anyway, I happened upon a 2-for-1 deal that only applied today at that bungee place! SCORE! Since there were 3 of us, one of us got to go twice with the deal. So since it was “my idea,” I was elected for it, even though I wasn’t completely sure I wanted to TWICE! So because of that, I had to go first. They got us harnessed up and brought us to the top, and we waited and waited. Then they called me over, put on my ankle harnesses, started telling me about it (and making fun of my accent…and the fact that I couldn’t understand theirs), and it was finally time to jump.

Um, all I have to say is that BUNGEE JUMPING IS 100 TIMES SCARIER THAN SKYDIVING. SERIOUSLY. If any of you are considering doing an adrenaline-y activity, I’d recommend skydiving first and bungee jumping last. I THOUGHT I was going to die. 

I put my arms out to the side...

...looked out in the distance at three buildings...

...and on the count of three swan dived (dove) off that crane!!! 

At first I was just in shock that I actually jumped. And I was proud of myself. 

Then I started to free-fall. FUN! 

Then my stomach stayed where it was while my body accelerated faster than I could process, and I plummeted facefirst toward the ground and FREAKED OUT. 

So it went from an AHHHH-I-can’t-believe-I’m-bungee-jumping scream... to an AHHH-this-is-kind-of-fun scream...

...to a "WAIT-THIS-IS-KINDA-SCARY" scream...

 ... to an AHHHHHHH-I’M-GOING-TO-DIE-OMG-OMG-OMG scream. 

 Then I just closed my eyes and pretended it wasn't happening. :)

Then once the bungee caught me and I started bouncing it turned back into a happy fun “Wooohooooo!” 

 I bounced around for awhile...

 ...but that part was just fun! 

(Keep in mind the downpour that was happening.)

I hung there upside down in the pouring rain as I waited for the dinghy. Then I got lowered into the dinghy and laid there in a huge puddle of rain, while it continued to pour on me. I WAS DRENCHED. Now to do it all over again...

So I went back up the elevator, watched James and Fiona go, and as I was getting ready for my second jump they jokingly suggested I go backwards. Well, I didn’t know the next time I’d be bungee jumping and I went backwards out of a plane so…why not. 

Um, let me tell you it’s SCARY standing on the edge of a platform with only your toes on the edge and your heels hanging off and 150 feet of nothing below until the river. 

As I was standing there I almost chickened and turned around, but I changed my mind and just did it. They made a very big deal about keeping my back straight and stiff... 

...well, the second I fell backwards, keeping my back straight was the LAST thing on my mind and I was flying through the air!

Before I knew it I was bouncing again..

...really fast!

And then hung upside-down in the pouring rain. 

WHEW, what a day. But it was a FUN day and I’m glad I did it. :) We went home, dried off, bundled up, and rewarded ourselves by getting big pizzas.

So here’s what I told my parents:

Mom: Sorry I went bungee jumping.

Dad: Sorry I didn’t invite you! ;)

Our "after" picture