Thrill Junkie...Not!

Story by Gabriel McCrea, FNN 4th grade reporter for FPCS Online Academy and photo from chinadiscovery.com.

April 1, 2021: One big gulp of air and I couldn't breathe anymore.  Just looking down made me say, “ I am going to die”.  

As a faithful reader of my travel blog, I know you want to know . . . Why? My travel today has taken me to 29.3982 north and 110.6962 east, on the map.  Where is that? Right now I am sitting in the middle of Zhangjiajie Bridge. Walking across the bridge has taken me a little longer than most because my brother had to drag me most of the way. The floor of the bridge is totally  GLASS, TRANSPARENT, SEE THROUGH. I was holding on to the railing the whole time. It feels like it took me an hour to get to the middle of the bridge but it was only about 30 minutes walking very slowly.  It usually takes people less than an hour to cross the bridge.  

The bridge was finished on August 20, 2016.  It took 18 months to make the glass bridge.  There is a path on the other side of the bridge that takes a little while to get to. It was so cool to see nature across the bridge and to see the waterfalls, creatures and caves.  It makes the walk across the bridge worth the anxiety. It took me two to three hours to complete the path. 

The boat ride was the best part of the adventure.  I could see the fish swimming everywhere. 

The Zhangliiajie used to be the longest glass bridge in the world, but in 2018 that prize was taken by the Hongyagu suspension bridge, which is also in China. The Zhangjiajie bridge is 1,400 feet long and 46 feet wide. The walkway is 980 feet off of the ground. When I heard this I got even more scared. 

This was a thrilling experience—but scary. And looking through the glass made me feel like I would fall. That is why the boat was my favorite part. If the boat sank, I can swim, but I haven't learned how to fly.  Guess I am not a thrill junkie after all.