Day 4

G-day All
Well Day 4 has come and gone . I dont have a lot to report, the reef has been rough since we arrived with winds at 20-30 knots . The forecast isn`t much better . We have a snorkeling trip planned for tomorrow thursday . It doesn`t look like the seas are going to calm down for it . We visited Hartleys Crocodile Farm yesterday they really have a nice place and are very informative about Crocs and there habitats they have a nice boat ride and a few great shows they put on . The Croc atack show was good . We also went to the koala feeding.
We also visited the AJ Hackett Jump Site . Ok you ask what is this ? Bungy jumping you blokes .
Ha Ha ,Now why would you want to jump from a perfectly good platform 164 feet in the air with only a rubberband tied to your feet ? Not because it sounds like A good idea ! You arrive there and enter the observation area . It has a bar tables and a deck overlooking small waterfall and a pond sort of , I am guessing this is a safety pool in case your bungy breaks . You can see the platform above the pool with the bungy`s hanging off the edge of the platform and you think to yourself (hmmm that doesnt look very high in the air ) Stand there and watch a few crazy blokes jumping and screaming . Ok I am going to do this . I have always wanted to do this and while watching the amazing race I learned one of the tallest bungy jumps in the world is in new zealand over some gorge off a bridge . So why not do it in Oz . My wife and son wanted nothing to do with this as I fully expected . I paid my money and took everything out of my pockets and took my shoes off , walked barefoot to the steps. About halfway up I loooked over the edge and thought to myself Holy Crap, I am only halfway up and that pool is getting really small looking . I get to the top and there are 2 mates running the show and about 4 people waiting to jump . These 2 mates are busy every minute, they have to safety tie everyone up by the feet they have to adjust the bungy ropes for every jumpers weight in KG . they have to drop the jumper to the boat , they have to talk a few jumpers into jumping , pull the bungy back up into the platform and do a little dance for the video tape running after every jump . These 2 mates were great people . They had good old american rock n roll blasting over the speakers and were generally having a good time .
I learned while up there on the platform that even though the Aussies speak english there is a more than formidable language barrier here . I really had to listen and think about what they were saying to try and understand them . There use of the english language is so reliant on slang and different uses for the same words we hear every day that it is really hard to understand and comprehend what it is exactly they are saying . they also talk so bloody fast it is unbelievable . Any way I get hooked up and my instructions . I move over to the edge of the platform look down over the edge with nothing holding me but the bungy and think to myself WOW this is nuts .He counts down from 5 to 1 and I am suppose to jump . I didnt and he starts telling me look the longer you stay here the harder it is to do . I said oh . Well I watched 1 or 2 people jump before me and he held them out over the edge by the belt and when he counted down to 1 he let there belt go and off they went . Well he was just going to let me jump and didnt have ahold of my belt .
So I told him I thought you were going to let go of my belt thats why I didn`t jump . He counted backward from 5 to 1 and off I went . I have never had a adrenaline rush before in my life like that ! bobsledding in St. Moritz was close but it wasnt the same . I hit the water and went in up to my shoulders and bounced back up at least 3/4 of the way to the platform and bounced at least 2 more times after that . Insane stuff . And of course they have a special if you want to do the second jump it is only $35 . Might as well while I am here . Of course you never do the same thing twice . Jump #2 is backwards facing and I think i enjoyed it even more !!! Oh ya and by the way after I jumped Matt decided he wanted to do it. He was scared climbing the steps but he got right out on the edge and didn`t hesitate to jump right off. Needless to say the wife didnt want anything to do with it !!! No Worries