The Restless Firefly

Bungee or sky jumping has always been in my bucket list that still remains open in many years waiting to be crossed out. I went to Vegas with a strong conviction with a loud and firmly brave heart that I can do the sky jump in Stratosphere. And since it is the highest in the world I knew I can conquer all the sky jumps everywhere like in Macau or in Phuket, like everywhere, if I manage to stay alive after the Stratosphere jump. . Hehe. . I am fond of theme park rides too, those give me an abrupt adrenaline rush, so Stratosphere is the perfect place for me in Vegas. Theme park rides on top of a building hundred stories high can be something disconcerting though. If you have fear of heights, then chances are you’re not gonna enjoy the most of the Stratosphere. It is not a place for the faint hearted humans though I think you can still savor good food and drink at the bar while enjoying the panoramic view of the Sin City thousands of feet above. I asked my cousin to drive me from home to Stratosphere on my last day in Vegas. I was excited and all and brought my old GoPro with me to film myself while I do the famous sky jump. As we approach the tallest tower in Vegas, I was getting mixed sensations of excitement and daunting knees with butterflies in my stomach comparable to the feeling when you’re in love. Lol.

The Tower Admission plus unlimited rides at $36 was, i thought, worth my Stratosphere visit so I hastily took this package. There are other packages to choose from at http://www.stratospherehotel.com/Activities/Thrill-Rides. I hurriedly went to the elevator, rode up to see where the sky jump starts. I watched a brave one screaming “woohoo”s on his way to the ramp while he’s all geared up in a jump suit. I have witnessed how it took him a little while to finally decided to jump, it took a number of “3-2-1, Go!!” from the staff before he actually did it. I still salute him for his courage to free fall. While the audience was in amazement screaming and clapping their hands after the guy jumped, I was picking all my sh*ts together and finding the courage I have hidden somewhere, thinking if I should try. “Where are you, bravery, when I needed you most?” My courage doesn’t wanna be found that very minute so I went to the tower roof top where all the rides are.

There are 3 rides at the top of Stratosphere, and yes, I’m bragging that I was able to ride all of them. Yey! I went alone but met a few ladies who were screaming their lungs out too, upon hearing them scream I knew we can get along. But before I scared myself in the rides, I firstly gazed in awe at the postcardesque view of the city. 🙂

Insanity

This ride will take you at the side of the tower, spins you around while you see what’s just under. Embrace the hundred-stories-high wind blows and the dizziness induced by whirling. I was about to vomit after the ride, but I managed not to. Hehe. .

X Scream

This is like an extremely short and straight roller coaster ride but the rails move until it slants and makes you lean forward and you have no choice but to peer down. The sound of the strong wind while you are seated just made the ride more hair-rising.

Big Shot

This ride is similar to the EKstreme Tower ride in Enchanted Kingdom back in my hometown except that the tower stands at the top of a taller tower. wink! It’s supposed to give you a better view of the expanse of the Sin City included on the $36 package but I bet you won’t be able to concentrate on appreciating the panoramic view of the valley as the ride shoots you up and drops you at extremely fast speed. No, I didn’t screamed my lungs out in this ride, because I was actually not able to speak while my seat was being thrown up. My heart stopped during that ride, I wanted to scream but for some reasons I cannot. My mouth was open but no sound came out. That’s how scary the ride was but it was my most favorite. . 🙂

My knees were shaking after I’ve tried all the rides. I didn’t have the audacity anymore to repeat any ride thus the unlimited package wasn’t really maximized though it’s just $1 more expensive than getting all 3 rides one time. . It was getting dark (remember that my Vegas days start at 4:00PM) and the wind was getting cold. I lost the remaining small percentage of tenacity to do the Sky Jump. I told myself I wasn’t ready yet, maybe next time. I went a few levels down from the roof top to sip a drink and grab some french fries. I found a couch seat at the bar facing the window, thought about shallow things, and enjoyed the view of the city as if I was staring at the stars in the moonlit sky except that I was looking down.

As soon as I started feeling tipsy, I went down to the hotel lobby, did some souvenir shopping for my mom, dad and sisters and called my cousin to pick me up. It was a very wonderful evening. I was a child again, naive and just had fun. My cousin came just in time after I finished shopping. I got my ass in the car with my knees still shaking as if I was about to report a presentation to the director of our engineering department. I shared all the craziness I had with my cousin on our way home, I made him laugh somehow. Upon reaching home, I packed my bag and prepared myself for the next day’s adventure.