One of my life’s most ultimate desires was to do adventure activities. Growing up in a traditional Bengali middle class family pretty much prohibited to doing such activities. So, when I was away on the FAM trip to Selangor in Malaysia with Tourism Selangor and Malindo Air, I decided to take matters into my own hands and complete the bucket list.
Doing paragliding
The first of these activities was paragliding. In paragliding, you are strapped to a parachute along with a pilot and you jump off the side of a cliff. Although this activity is quite prevalent in Manali and Bir Billing where international paragliding events take place nowadays, I had never been able to take part. Part of the reason was that probably I had never really traveled alone and secondly most of my forays in India were at luxury Fort Hotels.
So when I got my itinerary from Tourism Selangor, I was pretty surprised that the first activity that we were going to do after landing there was paragliding. The state of Hulu Selangor, especially its district capital Kuala Kubu Bharu is quite known for its adventure activities and it is one place that should be definitely on your itinerary while visiting Malaysia. The vast open lush green forest landscape combined with hills and streams flowing through it makes Hulu Selangor the destination for adventure activity.
I did my paragliding session with Kelab Luncur Udara KKB (Paragliding Club of KKB) and what I loved about them was the quite way their trainer Planta answers all the relevant questions. A four wheel drive takes you up a secluded mountain route. The drive itself is hair rising in itself but the view from the to makes it all worth it. I was tied to my harness along with the parachute and given the basic instructions of running until my feet start dangling. Although the edge was still quite a few metres away, my heart was already pounding. A sudden gush of wind inflated the parachute prematurely pulling me backwards but I recovered leaving me nothing more than a scuffed shoe and a bruised ego.
One important thing that I would like to tell all the newcomers is that you won’t be travelling all the way to the edge and will have liftoff after running a few steps.
The first moment of exhilaration rushes through my body as I lift off from the ground and the view which had been blocked by the mountain on side expands before me. The bird’s eye view is indeed a fascinating one. I am able to see the blue waters of the lake on my left side while the turret of the mosque glistens in the sun. Not only does your pilot take you on a course down, he maneuvers higher by hopping on the clouds. I feel the rush of adrenaline soak through me as I leave the worries of the world behind. One of the reasons I liked doing the paragliding here is essentially the flight time. While it is pretty less in India at 2-4 minutes, here it extends to nearly 10-12 minutes. The activity is priced at RM 200-300 which roughly converts to INR 3000-4000.
Check them out here.
Bungee Jumping at Sunway Lagoon
My second activity was bungee jumping. Although I was almost about to get an opportunity few months back to go explore a Bungee jumping station in India, but the plans hadn’t worked out. But I got the opportunity at Sunway Lagoon. Sunway Lagoon is an entertainment park which is a part of the Bandar Sunway, a township which offers complete entertainment for the whole family. The area has three of Sunway’s best hotels: Sunway Lagoon Resort and Spa, Sunway Clio, Sunway Pyramid hotel and the Sunway Pyramid mall.
The Sunway Lagoon offers a plethora of entertainment activities and combines a water park with other rides allowing you to relax the whole day. There is also a plethora of places to eat out. The ticket prices for entering the park are RM 170. The Bungee jumping costs RM 138 extra.
The first thing that happens is that you have to fill out a disclosure form and your weight is also measured. Then, we made our way to the top. As the Bungee jump happens from the middle of the walkway, you have to climb upto that point. The climb is always the most strenuous part of the jump. After getting to the platform on the top, your are snapped into your harness. Sitting on the platform is one of the most exhilarating and fearful experience ever.
After strapping on the harness, you have to tiptoe your way to the edge of the platform. This is where your fear will take a grip on you. You would do well to not look down and stare straight forward. And then you jump. You jump into an empty nothingness until you feel the snap of the rope against your feet. The jump had me screaming in fear the moment I realized the emptiness of space. As the jump is over a water park, you can either choose between getting dipped in the water or not. The moment your jump is complete you will be pulled onto a boat and then pulled to the shore.
Finally the team at Sunway Lagoon presents you with a Certified Insane certificate that was my mark of momentary madness.
Find out more about Sunway Lagoon here.
