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December 20, 2004 was the day I finally put into practice a plan I had nurtured for several years: to do a bungee jump. Being in New Zealand, the adrenaline junkie's paradise, I felt that the setting was right. There was only one problem: I was chicken. I needed to make sure there was no way I could back out, so I told several friends of my plan - one of whom, Derek, resolved to come with me to perform a jump himself. There was no backing out.


So off we went. A little van took us to the jumping site (www.taupobungy.com). It was surprisingly close by; I would have preferred a longer ride to put off the jump for a little while longer. But now there was no going back.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We walked to the hut where clients were received and I was weighed (it was very embarrassing to have my weight written all over my hand!). Being a typical girl, I don’t like to talk about my weight, let alone give it away to everyone who happens to walk past. Studying the number, I resolved to take go on a diet. However, for the moment, there were some more urgent matters to be taken care of.

My friend and I walked to the platform we were supposed to jump from; I was almost paralysed with fear. Derek went first, and appeared quite calm and composed. He also jumped in style, as the video later showed us. I was a different matter altogether - I almost turned tail and ran when when I stepped on the platform and saw the river far below me.

Before the jump, I had to sit down so that my feet could be secured to the rubber cord that would save me from falling straight into the river, 47m below - well, hopefully it would.