water, air, ice and white horses

Wow. Last week was definitely a week of new experiences for me. I've barely even had time to digest it all...

Tuesday I had a day off work and spent it trying to relax. I spent an hour in a floatation tank which was the most bizarre experience... I'm not even sure I found it entirely pleasant. Basically, you get into this strange capsule full of warm water. You lie back and try to relax all your muscles whilst music is played to lull you into a sort of stupor. You turn the lights out and then in my case..
- you feel like you're falling. it's hard to orientate yourself as you are floating but you cannot feel your limbs.
- some time later (it's hard to keep track of time) the pain starts. a very uncomfortable ache spreads through your neck and shoulders and lasts for seemingly ages and ages and ages
- the pain disappears and you drift in and out of a light sleep. possible snoring and twitching occurs
- more pain, this time in the lower back.
- more twitching, only this time you sort of wake up, forget you're in water and thrash about slightly. the water movement makes you bob from side to side
- start to feel a bit seasick. try desperately to ignore it
- it's hard to breathe. you wonder how long you've been in this watery box. you wonder if your feet are still there.
- the music starts playing again indicating it's time to get out. you fumble for the door button and get out.

Getting out of the capsule was uncomfortable. My body felt heavy. Firstly there is a slight relief at the fresh cool air rushing into my lungs and then the nausea came back. I was pretty glad to get out of that room although once I'd gone outside, I was aware of a sense of detachment and relaxation. It was like a good session in a sauna. I was spaced out and it was as if I'd left something behind in that little room.
I'm glad I went, though I'm not sure if I'd want to do it again.

My next experience was the confrontation of one of my fears.
I'd always been pretty scared of heights and rollercoasters. Yeah I've been to Disneyworld but all the rides there have a strict emphasis on the fun element. So, I decided that a trip to Alton Towers was in order. I last went there in 1997 I think - and don't remember going on any of the rides at all so either I didn't, or it was such a bad experience I blocked it completely from my mind :) Anyway. My mission was to go on Oblivion. I saw it the last time I went and swore never to put myself through the ordeal of going on it. It's a simple ride. You sit in a car, go up a really steep incline, the ride tilts you so you can see the drop, then releases you to plunge into a black hole. It's horrible. And very high.

I saved that ordeal for last. I had to build myself up to it. The other rides at Alton Towers are pretty cool - Nemesis is fantastic. A new ride called Air is a very strange concept. You ride it horizontally - you spend most of it face down, watching the ground whizz by, and the rest of the ride on your back, watching the sky. A bit like flying I guess :) So... by the time I reached Oblivion I'd put my heart through it's paces but that didn't stop the fear and the dread that went through my mind as I walked through the empty queue. It was off-peak and midweek which meant that the park wasn't all that busy (which was great in most cases). Of course, I was almost hoping that there would be a queue as I was so scared but as my luck would have it, I was able to walk straight onto the ride. Before I could protest, I was unable to move and on my way up. It's odd but I don't remember much of the drop except for the fear. It was a petrifying and extreme experience that I wouldn't want to relive in a hurry. But I did it! And I was glad afterwards.

Thursday was the Goldfrapp gig. This was a bit of an experience because it was at Brixton Academy and I'd never been there before. To be honest, Brixton Academy has a bit of a reputation for being a bit of a dodgy place. Being a nice girl I don't often go to that kind of place :P
The gig was pretty good - particularly when they played Ride a White Horse where all these girls in tight outfits and horsey tails came onto the stage :))) For some reason I found that rather appealing...

Finally, yesterday I went to this fantastic new bar called the Absolut Ice Bar It was (literally) very cool. You have to reserve a time slot to go there and they give you these silver eskimo outfits to keep warm before you go in. The bar is kept at a temperature of minus five degrees and the walls and bar and seats are made of ice. The drinks are served in glasses carved from ice. Fantastic place :) But, as one review of the bar that I read put it, it's not a place to check people out. Not unless you have a penchant for silver eskimo outfits ;)


So... all in all I had a very busy week. This week I want to chill out and prepare myself for the physical and mental challenge that is my 10K run on Sunday :((((( eek!