JAMES BOND BUNGEE JUMP

Sorry we haven't posted anything in a long time.........we still want to finish the blog so we have it for our memories and keepsakes even if nobody looks at it now and if it takes us years! I typed this post when we were still in Switzerland so it will seem like we are still there. Sorry to confuse anyone.........we are for sure still back in Canada now!


BUNGEE JUMPING IN SWITZERLAND

I know a lot of you think we're crazy for doing this...........but it was PRETTY SWEET!

For those of you who have seen the James Bond Golden Eye movie then you know more than you think. The Bungee Jump that James Bond does is located in Switzerland. Basically he jumps off a HUGE dam in a suit. This is in the Locarno area in the Italian part way down south.

ANYONE is able to book a jump there on the weekends so.........

Brian and I went with 4 of our friends to attempt this jump.

Our friends Paul, Mike, Matt, and Guilherme all decided it would be a lot of fun to do this. Paul had already jumped it in the summer when we arrived in Switzerland so it was a piece of cake for him! haha For the rest of us, we just pretended not to be afraid. We took the train and then a bus to get to the Dam, like everywhere else we go.

It was WAY bigger than I even imagined! But I stayed calm and tried not to show the guys I was scared! ha It was nerve-racking for everyone though; I'm sure of it! When we got off the bus we walked over to the edge and looked over (maybe not the best tactic). It was insane how BIG and FAR down it was! First we all signed our lives away and paid our debt. Then picked our order to jump. Mike jumped first. He was stoked. Honestly his energy became my energy; that is the only way I stayed calm and pumped about it.


Before they let you jump you have to practice attaching your harness to the other bungee cord sent down to get you, just like in the real jump. If you are unable to do this you can't jump. Fair enough.



So during the practice you lay on this cot where they attach the harness to your ankles and then onto your whole body. It was really secure and really no way it could come off of you. When you are lying down they hoist you up into the air by the same harness and bungee cord they use in the jump. After you're hanging there you have to pull your body up with the rope into a sitting position. This is actually really hard! But we were all able to do it so we all qualified...

The order was:

Mike, Guilherme, ME, BRIAN, Matt, and then Paul.

Mike did awesome! He loved it so much and just got everyone pumped.

Gui screamed the whole way but had the biggest rush.

THEN IT WAS MY TURN....

Honestly I have never been so scared in my entire life. At first when I was getting all strapped in and even when I got up to the platform I was fine. I was so excited since the first two loved it, I couldn't wait for my turn. And then I looked over the edge......

It was SO FAR DOWN and not much to stand on. Plus they say not to look down...but to get onto the part of the platform you jump off YOU HAVE TO LOOK DOWN! If you don't you'll just fall off the edge, it was so small!

Finally after holding onto the railing for a while the guys convinced me I could do it. So I let go of the bar I was now attached to and took the last step out on the platform. The guys in charge said they would count to 3 and then I should jump or I probably won't. So they started counting, and when they said 3 I just jumped!

It was honestly the scariest thing I have ever even thought about! Unfortunately for me when the bungee yanked me back up into the air after the initial jump it pulled on my knee so hard that it really hurt during the whole thing. So of coarse the guys working the Bungee jump took me to the hospital to get it checked out. I was on crutches for a week or so but was totally fine after that. The problem was that if you have an injury to your body when you jump that weakened area is more prone to getting hurt. They told us that the only injuries they've had at their bungee site are knee injuries. Typically if a person has a bad knee already then they are more susceptible to hurting it during the jump because the strain on it is too much. If I knew about this beforehand I may have reconsidered jumping in the first place but oh well. Apparently they only have about 1 injury per year, lucky me!

Really unfortunately I missed Brian's jump because I was in so much pain and everyone was looking at my knee. :( Good thing we video taped the jumps!

Brian just stepped out onto the platform right away and when they said he could jump at any time he just did it! If you blinked you would have missed it! Crazy guy! Then after Brian's jump Brian came with me to the hospital and we missed Matt and Paul's jump. But we also watched those on video too so it wasn't so bad, I guess.

It was sweet to be there though. Even though I hurt myself, like usual, I am still glad I did it. I wouldn't want to take it back, the rest of it was fun.
It was such a rush and SO INTENSE!

Just in case me describing the jumps wasn't enough we have attached the video's of Brian's and my jump for you all to watch and enjoy. The angle of Brian's isn't the best but you still get the idea!

Let us know what you think! Even if you think we're insane!

Also for some reason if the link doesn't work just go to www.youtube.com and type "Louise's bungee jump" and/or "Brian's bungee jump".

Visiting Family!

What a fun weekend!

I don't even know where to begin...

Brian and I visited my auntie, my mom's sister, Gill, my cousin Kate and Gill's husband Keith.
Honestly we had such an amazing visit. Right from the moment we arrived in Liverpool we just felt so close and comfortable with them. It was like we've know each other for years! I can't even explain how fantastic it was to finally get to know them and how great the weekend was!

First off they picked us up from the Liverpool airport and as soon as we saw one another we knew each other straight away. Both them and us were a bit concerned before if we would recognize each other or not. For those of you who don't know..........
I have only been to England to see my mum's family once when I was 1 or 2 years old; which I obviously don't remember at all. Other than that Auntie Gill has come to Canada to visit us 3 times, also when we were little so I don't actually have any real memories of her unfortunately. Her daughter Kate is 12 so she is the same age as my brother Ethan; whom I have never seen before! Crazy I know.

Anyways........Gillian is the SPITTING IMAGE of my mum, honestly they could be twins. And the more I looked at her and talked to her the more she reminded me of mum. It was actually so strange to be there because it was like talking to my mum but not, so weird. Just the fact that it was my aunt and cousin and I didn't know them at all before that!

But, getting on with our weekend...

They first took us to their house in the sub-burbs of Preston (close to Manchester) where we got settled into our room and chatted until our supper reservations. Then they took us to this very nice Italian restaurant that night. It was fantastic! It was the best meal we've had in a long time! Despite how full we all were we managed to have starters and a dessert! haha I haven't done that in so long. After supper we headed back to their house, continuing to get to know each other. It was hilarious because now we know many funny stories about my mum when she was young! Always good to have.

The first day Keith cooked us a wonderful breakfast, then we took off to a town called Chester. It was a beautiful place with a lot of shopping too! We spent the day there, seeing some of the sights and roamed the streets. It was a fun day. After that we stopped at an outlet shopping mall in another town on the way home to look for "trainers". (That is what British people call sport shoes for those of you who don't know.) I was looking for a pair but had no luck. :(

In the morning we went jet skiing! How fun was that! It was our first time to try it so this was pretty exciting! We got up early and drove out to a nice little lake. The weather was just perfect for it! Brian and I each got a turn riding with Keith. Brian picked it up really fast and took it for a spin on his own right away! I finally drove with Keith on the back but didn't take it on my own. I'm saving that for next time we go! haha I also rode with Auntie Gill driving; that was also fun. Kate was so funny because when Keith took her out she would scream every time they turned! Good times.

We headed back to the house around lunch time so that we could meet up with my mom's best friend from England, Elaine. Auntie Gill took us to Elaine's house and planned on meeting up with us later. It was really neat to see Elaine because we've heard so much about her over the years from my mum. Elaine also has a daughter that is 12; who hung out with us as well. She was hilarious; asking so many different questions curious about Canada and it's similarities and differences to England. It was a lot of fun being with them.

First they took us to Manchester where we were able to check out the Manchester Old Trafford stadium. This was sweet because there was a game about to be played there at the time so the area was full of football (soccer) fans. The game was between Chelsea and Blackburn. I don't know where the league is at or anything because I don't really follow it. I know for sure that Elaine will know; she is one of the biggest fans! She has seasonal tickets and everything! She goes to probably every home game for Manchester United. I WISH!

After that Elaine took us out for a late lunch/early supper to an really nice Italian restaurant. We had a wonderful time visiting and catching up, enjoying our great meal. When we were finished Elaine took us back to Auntie Gillian's where we all hung out for a bit, having tea. We did got some great pictures with Elaine and Laura before they went back home. I'm really happy that we were able to meet them and be a part of the life my mum lived when she was in England.

After that the weekend just flew by! We hung out together at the house, sharing stories and having a good laugh. We had to leave the next morning which was really sad, but Gill and Keith had to go back to work as well as Kate to school. So it was a good time to go back home but we wished we didn't have to so soon. It was such a short visit but a good one. I am really glad that we went.....I just regret not going sooner! We could have visited a few times over the year we were in Europe. More reason to go back to England now though! We plan on keeping in touch and visiting each other when we can. I already can't wait unitl the next time we see each other!

My mum is finally going to England again to visit her sister, neice, and Keith as well as her friends there that she keeps in touch with still. She leaves towards the end of June and stays for a month! I am super excited for her and know that she will have a wonderful time!

To Auntie Gillian, Uncle Keith, and Kate:

Thank you so much again for the wonderful time we had staying with you. We will cherish our memories and won't be strangers! See you soon!

Around Switzerland

My friend Eugene decided to stop by on his way back from a course in Amsterdam. Him and his friend where planning to spend 2 days with us, touring around Switzerland; but unfortunately they had a delayed flight and only got to spend one day. But we made the most of it and visited Luzern and Zurich. We had a great time with Eugene, luckily the weather was pretty nice. Unfortunately Switzerland wasn't soo green when they came though. The snow was gone, but the leaves weren't all out yet. The leaves have come out since, and it is already super nice here.

Anyways, here's some pics from Luzern:





And pics from Zurich:

After we got back to Baden we went up to the castle that evening on the way home. Other than that we weren't able to squeeze much else into this short stay; but it was a good time for sure and we're glad they came!

Trip to Ireland (Trim)

Like we said in the Dublin post; most of the Ireland trip revolved around being in Trim. It really made our trip for sure!

The plan was to meet my mom's friends Anne and Pat in Trim, Ireland. So when we were finished in Dublin on Saturday evening we met up with Siobhan, one of their daughters, where she works in Dublin. It just so happened to be really close to our hostel which worked out nicely. Siobhan took us to the bus station and we got on a bus to Trim. We arrived at their house and had a later supper with their family. Anne and Pat were so accommodating and kind to us the whole time! It was wonderful to get to know them and their family; we were really fortunate to have stayed with such hospitable people!

While we were their, other than enjoying many delicious homemade meals, Anne and Siobhan took Brian and I around Trim to check out the sights. It was absolutely beautiful in the country side of Ireland! We just loved every minute of it! For those of you who don't know, Trim's castle is one of the main castles filmed in the movie Braveheart. Not only that, most of their family were extras in Braveheart! So of course we saw the castle and even went on a tour inside it to find out the history and get a closer look. That was fantastic; what a cool castle it was! We also were able to watch the parts of the movie that each of them were in! That was neat, I can't wait to show my mom where they are.

After this we took a drive through the country side, which was amazing, to a place called The Hill of Tara. This is another touristy spot where everyone comes to see the statue of St. Patrick and the famous hill where the high kings were crowned. According to legend, the stone would scream if a series of challenges were met by the would-be king. At his touch the stone would let out a screech that could be heard all over Ireland. So....that's the story there.

The rest of the time we spent hanging out at their house, drinking tea and eating very well! What a great time! We're so happy that we were able to meet these friends of my mom; it was a wonderful experience to remember.