Nearly a month at sea puts us at long last in the City of Sails.
It’s my second time to Auckland, well, technically third as we were here during the fall voyage but I opted not to get off the ship as we were only there for a day. We docked by twilight, a day earlier than we had originally been scheduled, which meant we had a lovely chance to wander the city when the streets were nearly empty (most of the shops and restaurants were already closed for the evening).
For me stepping off the ship in New Zealand is like a temporary transport home. Auckland is a harbor city of the same type as Victoria, the same smells and sounds, the same relaxed energy along the water front. Our arrival here falls perfectly when I need that little taste of home. Many of the guests of course went straight for the free wi-fi provided by a myriad of coffee shops and at least one fast food restaurant, but my computer is heavy – being as it is more an entertainment console than a communication device 😉 – and I was just as pleased to set foot on dry land and do nothing else for an hour or so.
Besides, I had plans for the next day, and an early morning, so bed called me early. I promptly had very strange dreams that involved clockwork and circuses and my roomie being a pick-pocket. I suspect this had something to do with the book of short stories I was reading before sleep – but that’s neither here nor there.
The second day (which would be today actually), I worked the morning shift which served to wake me up a bit from said very strange dreams, and looked out at the shimmering Auckland skyline. Unlike most of the ports we visit on these long cruises, Auckland actually has a very pretty working harbor, and we’re nestled right close to town so it’s just a short walk to pretty much anywhere of interest. As usual most people bee-line for the internet hubs, but the adventurous few go a bit farther afield. The biggest attraction for many is the Auckland Sky Tower; soaring 192m above the rest of the skyline, it’s the tallest building in the Southern Hemisphere and the center of (the rather drab I’m afraid to say) SkyCity. It’s always reminded me a bit of the Space Needle, as if they built it and then realized that they couldn’t just have this weird looking building standing there all by itself, so they’d best build something around it…but it still ends up being this…weird looking building standing there all by itself 😛
I had long ago made up my mind what I was doing in Auckland this season, in fact, I’d already decided on it back when I was onboard for the Grand Asia in September. The steep price of $225NZ gets you a ‘flight suit’ a double strength harness and the chance to jump the 630ft drop from the top of the Sky Tower. This is not something you would think that any sane person would do voluntarily, but I have never made any claims to being sane.
It takes about ten minutes to rig you up in the harness, during which time they also have you remove anything that might come loose during the fall: hairclips (though they give you an elastic to tie your hair back because otherwise you’d be swallowing it), any kind of jewelry etc. They also give you securing straps for your glasses, which is helpful considering that I cannot see at all without my glasses. The harness weighs a ton, but it’s very similar to the ones that are usually used for zip-lining so I was sort of expecting that.
Once you’re all clipped in they hand you over to another attendant who whips you up the lift to the very top (three floors above the public observation deck), and have you gather in a little glass-walled waiting room where you can see the others who are going before you drop over the side.
The only truly frightening part of the whole experience is the moment where they clip you into the rig that’s going to hold you as you drop. Two big heavy clips attatch to your suit, one in the front one in the back and the attendant – still holding on to you – calls over her shoulder to the person running the drop machine.
Restraints clear!
*gulp*
There is a moment right before you drop when you’re standing at the very edge of the drop platform, holding onto two rope handles to either side of you , and the attendant is gripping the loop at the back of your suit – and that is all that is keeping you from going over – when you are looking straight down. Straight down a dizzying 630f. Your brain simply refuses to compute that you are about to be falling through that much air, and you’re only vaguely aware of the attendant behind you giving you all the last minute instructions.
Try to remember to hold your left arm out as you fall so that the camera will catch you. The rig is going to lift you up a bit, and I’ll give you a count down…when I say go, you’re gonna let go of those ropes okay?
Okay….
And here she comes…3,2,1
And she lets go, and if you are remotely normal, you scream bloody murder, because it feels like a free fall even though it’s not.
They slow you to a stop outside the observation deck so that all the people inside can gawk at the crazy person who is willing to pay good money to fly off the top of a building – and so that they can snap your picture from above. In my case, they were having problems with the camera so I ended up dangling there for a bit more time than expected and then whoosh, you’re falling again aaaaaaaaaalll the way down to the bottom.
Because it’s a controlled jump, they are actually able to slow you to a snail’s pace about ten feet from the bottom, so you land on your feet and barely feel the impact. That said, yes, my knees were jelly when I landed.
The next morning I ached all over and felt like I’d run a very long marathon because of the weight of the harness and the impact on my knees (which I really did barely felt at the time) when I landed. But it was so worth it. If only for the reaction of all the people who have been coming up to me and saying:
People are telling me you jumped off the Sky Tower
I did
YOU WHAT???? ARE YOU MAD???
I love my job J
well you really are nuts you know ……but adventuresome