Skydiving!

A thing about hostels...when I was in my 18-28 age range, staying in hostels was awesome. Lots of like-minded young people from all over the world basically having big coed bunk bed slumber parties every night. And in places like Cairns, beach wear is standard. All pretty awesome! Except I am no longer in that age range. I have too much nose hair, and my eyebrows are getting all bristly.  Lame.  Now the places just make me feel old. They really make me miss the comforts of my own room, comfortable and clean furniture, having places to put my things other than in a bag on the floor with 12 other bags, and not having to have the exact same conversation with 17 new strangers every day (that's what I do at work...). But there is one really good reason that I still stay at hostels when I travel like this. They are dirt cheap. And so when I see a bus drive by that says skydiving on it, and I whimsically decide that I want to go skydiving today, I can afford to do it! So, despite the 24 hr no fly after scuba diving rule (I lied on the release forms...) I spent my extra day in Cairns skydiving! It was wild! Pretty much everything I expected. I wasn't nervous at all about it. But that moment when they open the door and your feet are hanging above 14,000 feet of air between you and the ground, that moment gets the heart beating! The whole thing was such a rush! Well, after the parachute opened it was actually quite calm and relaxing. The loop de loops we did were a rush though! I made it safely to the ground with only injuries to my horribly un-equalized ears and headache inducing blood-nitrogen levels. Totally worth it!

The next day I meandered around cairns for a while before my flight out of Australia. Cairns is a cool place. Definitely the tropical beach party tourist vibe going on there. Only there aren't actually any beaches in the town itself. The place made me miss Lahaina, even though the two aren't all that similar. Every harbor I go to now makes me reminisce on the one I used to call home in little Lahaina town. Anyways, I had a good time there (in Cairns), even went out with some new mates from the hostel. Of course I was the first to leave and go to bed, but I did put forth effort.  This time I had liver disease, at least that's how I explained my Shirley Temple and refusal of the oft offered alcohol.   So I left Aus for what may be the last time ever. I hope it isn't, but thus is my life. I have no idea what I'll be doing next season. But I know what I'm doing now, and it's pretty sweet!

I really need a haircut...