mood playful

What took you so long?

Summer has officially ended, albeit a month too late. It all began a few nights ago when I was awakened in the blind of the night by the giant gush of wind blowing outside my bedroom window. The trees were swaying, the leaves were rustling, and for the first time ever since I arrived here, I actually felt cold. And there wasn't even any aircon on!

I spent the remaining hours of the night curled up like a shrimp in between the cold sheets and when morning finally came, I crept out of bed, tiptoed out to the living room and opened the door to the balcony. I watched the gaunt trees lurch violently back and forth while the wind whooshed past and sent chills down my spine, and I instantly decided that I like autumn :)

Anyway, last sunday (backdated as usual, sigh) we went to Dreamworld! Unlike Movieworld which had lots of quirky things to see, Dreamworld was more action-packed and it was rides all the way!





Other than all the thrill rides, there was Tiger Island, some wildlife experience thing (which is kinda lame cos there wasn't much animals), some koala show and a farm show where they showed you how to shear a sheep. We didn't take as many photos as we would have liked because the whole time we were there, Wayne was walking so damn fast like as though the rollercoasters were going to disappear before our very eyes unless we shuttle ran to the rides in thirty seconds. NO TIME TO LOSE! So we didn't see any koalas too.

The highlight of Dreamworld is the Big 5 Thrill Rides, which are supposedly five of the most mind-boggling, eyeball-popping and gut-wrenching rides you could possibly imagine, or so they say. My favourite of the lot was The Claw, this massive 9-storey pendulum thing that sways dangerously from left to right, coming full circle at 360 deg while the "passengers" scream helplessly with legs dangling out like little octopuses.





We went on it twice!





This is how helpless we looked.


Then there was also The Cyclone rollercoaster, the Tower of Terror, and the Wipeout, where we sat in a row of seats hinged at both ends to a structure which rotates in every possible direction that you could imagine. It was like being tossed in a tumble dryer, except that this one goes in a significantly slow stomach-churning motion, and you are just being spun and twisted left, right, up, down, on your belly, on your back, everywhere.





It didn't seem to make a lot of sense to scream when the content of your guts is busy doing a hula, but it was so just so amusing feeling myself being tossed about like a ragdoll at the mercy of a mass of steel. I was absolutely in hysterics even after we landed.





The Thunder Ride, some water rafting thingy.





Haha :)





Random pictures.


As you can probably tell, I am rushing through this entry because I want to get to the main point and talk about The Giant Drop! The name itself is quite self explanatory and it is supposedly the tallest free-falling ride in the world according to the Guiness Book of World Records. Basically you are slowly pulled up to the top of the pole and then literally dropped, free falling with legs dangling and all. The pole is 120 metres/ about 39 storeys high.

Wayne said the last time he went to Dreamworld he figured that if he got "dropped" often enough, he might actually get used to it and not be scared shitless when he's up there, so he went on it SIX times. But in the end his efforts were futile because by the sixth time it was still as equally petrifying as the first. I seriously can't decide whether to commend his guts or to laugh at his stupidity. But knowing Wayne, I shall probably settle for the latter.

The bugger had been since been tirelessly taunting me with it for days. We had countless debates about it in the car everytime we pass by The Giant Drop on the way to and fro work. Go figure. But just two days before the visit when I mentally decided that what the heck, I am just going to go for it, he sat me down and with all the kind intention that he could muster, told me that I really shouldn't go for it if i'm not comfortable, and that he will not call me a wuss if I don't go, because it really is very very scary.

YEAH RIGHT! Not til hell freezes over, he would.

*smirk*

When we were all queueing for the ride with chattering teeth and wobbly knees, all I could hear from the batches of people that went before us was the creaking of the machine as they were being pulled up, and then WHOOSH, and silence. Seemed like the friggin' drop was so fast that their brain cells were still busy processing the adrenalin to start sending signals to bloody SCREAM!!!!





The only positive side about the ride was that the view from up there was really stunning. Even though to be honest I wasn't exactly in the mood to look at scenery when my body was being dangled 39 stories halfway up in the air. And while Maysan was busy exclaiming "Oh, look, can see Brisbane from here!!", I was busy panicking and sensitizing every nerve on my body so as to detect any sudden jerks that would prepare me for the plunge. Ten thousand thoughts were running wild in my mind. What if the machine malfunctions? What if my seat drops off? What if the safety seat belt unbuckles? What if this whole thing collapses?? What if...


AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRHHHHHHH!!!!!




Then it was over.

Three seconds was all it took.


Never again in a thousand years will I go on that ride. I completely agree with Wayne, it was just not worth all the mental torture I put myself through. Good experience nonetheless, now I can say that I've tried plummeting down from 39-storey high and survived. Well, sort of anyway.

Came back exhausted because our adrenal glands were working way overtime. T'was a fun weekend though!



Blimey, only 5 weeks left :(

Labels: aussie, travel