The Ferris Wheel of Death
Before she left Japan, my roommate, Nads, was determined to go on the ‘World’s Biggest Ferris Wheel’ in Yokohama. I don’t have the stats on hand, but I seriously doubt it’s the biggest in the world. ‘Biggest’ from a Japanese perspective, maybe, but not in the world. Anywho, I agreed to go with her.
Neither of us had spent much time in Yokohama, which is only about a half hour outside Tokyo. I met her there after work. It was already dark and raining. We had no idea how to get to the famed Ferris wheel, though we could see it in the skyline, so we just followed that. Needless to say, we got completely lost. But we did manage to see some of the other sights Yokohama has to offer, such as ‘the Tallest Building in Japan’. (Seriously Japan, you gotta stop with the hyperbole already. That ‘tallest building’ was maybe 20 stories).
Eventually, we found ourselves in a fairground, so we figured we must be nearing the elusive Ferris wheel. The rain was now coming down pretty hard and a strong wind had joined it, leaving both Nads and I with pretty unsightly hair.
The fairground was like a ghost town. It was eerie how all the rides were going but no one was on them. Thinking back, it was probably because most people had the good sense to know that those weather conditions, plus fairground rides, would not equate to a good time.
Eventually we found it and climbed a few flights of stairs to the Ferris wheel (that’s why it’s the biggest Japan, because you didn’t build it from ground level – cheaters!)
Not surprisingly, there was no line. We walked straight up, paid and got on. The wheel started moving. We got up about 20 feet when a huge gust of wind sent our carriage rocking violently in mid-air.
Nads and I gripped our seats as we swung out of control. I really didn’t feel like plummeting to my death, especially when I was having such a bad hair day. All I could think was ‘I hope this isn’t some London Eye shit that takes 30 minutes to go round once.’
We were on the World’s Largest Ferris Wheel, on the world’s windiest day, in the world’s most earthquake prone country. Fun times.
As the wheel edged higher and higher, I couldn’t believe that whoever was operating this machine wasn’t trying to get us down as quickly as possible. Wasn’t there a big button that said ‘ABORT!’ somewhere? Screw getting my money’s worth – I’m trying to live! Get me down bitch!
After what seemed like 2 years, the wheel got back to its starting point.
Nads and I got off, our legs like jelly beneath us. We then went back to the World’s Smallest Apartment after what appeared to be the World’s Biggest Waste of Time.
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Tags: death defying experiences, ferris wheel, Japan, nads
