I finally got all my pictures together from zip lining last Saturday. Rachel, Jessica and I went to Forest Adventure Park, up north (again), in Nago. I was told that it gets crowded on weekends and reservations are mandatory. We made a reservation for 12, figuring that would give us enough time to sleep in, get lost a bit and complete the hour long drive. My directions said to turn at the Marriott, well, I guess there are two Marriott''s (one is actually called the Marriott, the other is called Rennissance Hotel). I ended up going 30 minutes past our destination, to the furthur Marriott. A worker inside the hotel was nice enough to call Forest Adventure Park for directions, gave me a map, showed me exactly how to get there and even let the park know we would be a few minutes late. We weren't even staying at the hotel and they went out of their way to assist us, this would never happen at home!
I drove a bit fast and made it to the park exactly on time.
We signed waivers at the Forest Adventure office and then drove across the street to park on a dirt parking lot. A shuttle picked us up and drove us about a mile back into the park. We walked a few minutes and arrived at "wipeout lodge" where the workers aggressively buckled us into our harnesses. Mine felt extra tight but I figured it was better than being too loose. We then had a two minute mini lesson in which a guide (who didn't speak English) showed us how to use our safety clips and gave us a demonstration. We then practiced our skills on a mini-course to show we knew what we were doing. The guide let us go free unsupervised!
We clipped ourselves in and out, thank goodness I had Rachel and Jessica with me, it took some practice before I got it right! There were no nets below us which made it even more exciting!
Strapping myself in.
Almost ready to go...
And I'm off...
Safe landing....I guess playing sports all those years paid off!
Entertaining ourselves.
We completed a series of zip lines before reaching the obstacle course. The obstacle course consisted of climbing cargo net ladders, swinging bars, swinging board bridges, a Tarzan swing and more zip lines.
Next, the Tarzan swing. The Tarzan swing consists of climbing up some very high ladders, clipping yourself on a free swinging rope and jumping from a platform in which you free fall into a jumbo cargo net. The Tarzan swing was by far my favorite part of the course! I did this part twice, it made the whole trip worth it!
View from the top of the platform at the Tarzan jump.
I made it!
We were a bit tired when we made it back to the car but we always have energy to take pictures on the beach.
The actual zip lining was okay, not as fast or high up as when I did it in Jamaica. This is a great place to take people, so for my future visitors, think about doing this!
This past weekend I went to gate 2 street where the school secretary's daughter danced with her hip hop group. The performance only lasted 30 minutes but the kids danced so well, I was very impressed! Some of the performers were as young as 5 years old!
After the performance, Jessica and I ate at Transit Cafe, a small cafe with an ocean view, it was beautiful and the food was perfect. The next day, I had Sunday brunch with Omar at the officer's club on Kadena. I got my filling of shrimp, crab legs, sushi and every other American food you can think of =) I looked around the BX (base exchange) and went to mass that evening. Today is Tuesday, only two more nights until I leave for Tokyo! My students are hyper this week. Tomorrow my students will sing "The Turkey on the Farm" to the tune of "Old McDonald Had a Farm" for their parents. Some of the military parents (who have ovens) are cooking turkeys for our school potluck, yummy. I have my suitcase out and most of my packing done. I'm only bringing a small carry-on size bag, hope I have enough to stay warm!
I will miss you all on Thanksgiving, I am thankful for your support and prayers.
I will be at Tokyo Disney, thinking of you =)
XOXO
Kristen
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