We flew over Damascus during our flight from Romania to Qatar.
On previous mission trips we had a saying that was incorporated during our time serving and I’ve adopted it into my daily living:
That’s just the way I like it.
The heart behind it was to have “bombproof adaptability,” not being discouraged by the little things that could disrupt your day.
Example: Hair in your soup at the restaurant. That’s just the way I like it.
Example: Plans change at the last moment. That’s just the way I like it.
Example: You don’t get to shower because the water ran out. That’s just the way I like it.
As one could imagine, a sarcastic tone may be inflected here or there, but for the most part it keeps me focused on what is truly important. It works extra well for long travel days, such as the one we just experienced.
Examples include:
Sleeping on the floor of a train.
Eating mushy sandwiches out of my “food bag.”
12-hour bus ride turning into a 29-hour bus ride.
Bus breaking down in the middle of said bus ride.
Broken seat in front of me on the bus.
Peeing on the side of the road while the bus is broken.
All these things are “just the way I like it.”
Really, it brings some humor to the ridiculous situations that we’re in sometimes. And sometimes, humor is just what you need.
Speaking of humor, you should watch this travel day video that I put together. It shows some less glamorous parts of the Race, as well as some unexpected luxuries. I think it’s worth the view!
Over night train Oradea to Bucharest: 13 hours
Over night flight Bucharest to Qatar: 4 hours
Flight from Qatar to Johannesburg: 8.25 hours
Over night bus from JoBerg to Cape Town 29 hours
