I don’t have a death wish (I think) but I often have the urge to jump from high places. At Niagara Falls, I wanted to wade into the rushing water and soar over the edge. Atop the Empire State Building, I wondered if the guardrail could be hurdled. I went skydiving in Hawaii, but the thrill was dampened by the banality of being strapped into the crotch of another dude.
I’ve always wanted to try hang-gliding, unmotorized and more akin to actually flying (and not just falling), and by coincidence Rio de Janeiro offers excellent peaks to drive up and jump off while hanging on to a big kite. In Portuguese this is called asa delta, which translates as “triangle wing.”I signed up to fly with Brazilian guide Klaus Koch of local company Megafly.
Going before me, Sarah caught a strong wind that stretched her flight to 17 minutes, while mine lasted a less-strong 12 minutes. We each landed on Gavea beach in Sao Conrado, an upscale neighborhood in southern Rio de Janeiro that is home to a bunch of famous actors and businessmen, whose beach-view pools and backyard patios were thoroughly inspected by me as I glided silently overhead.
