Hello family and friends, from the great nation of India! Here’s a recap of what the past 10-days have looked like for me.
Preparations began for the squad mini-debrief when my team returned from Cluj-Napoca and completed our Unsung Hero month in Romania. I was given the Logistics duty of determining the best modes of transportation to get around the capital city of Bucharest when the remainder of the squad arrived on the 25th. This included public bus, metro train, trolley car and taxi service. As I found out, this was no easy feat, since the public transit system in the booming metropolis is less than stellar, and essentially led to the squad walking from place to place.
New teams were formed on the night of the 25th during our all-squad meeting at Doors Hostel. My new team includes leader Owen Siebring, married couple Myers and Candace Bruce, and repeat team members Jamie Bailey and Jessica Feeley. I am elated at the new formation and believe that this group of Christ followers will really do big things both here in India and beyond. We chose the name ‘Team Night Moves’.
Half of R squad departed Bucharest on Friday the 26th and the second half on Saturday the 27th. On Thursday the 25th, my fellow logistics partners Alex Warren and Brad Ferrell, scoped out the best way to get the squad to the airport and on their way to India, as well as finalizing future squad plans. Alex and I went along with Brad and the first half of the squad on the hour-long public bus ride, and helped get everyone checked in and through security.
Alex and I returned to the hostel and gathered all the team receipts from month 3, and ventured to the nearest DHL location about 50-minutes away to ship them back to Daniel (AIM office Logistics Manager). This is something that we do every month, to help keep Adventures on budget and financially sound for future teams and squads. By the time we returned to the hostel, it had been a 15-hour day of coordinating and handling the on goings of debrief and everything that surrounds it. It was time to pack myself, and attempt to get some rest before our own travel day was upon us.
We paid and were checked out of the hostel around 12:30 p.m. on the 27th, as I led the final group of racers to the airport to meet up with everyone else. Qatar Airlines flight QR250 had a baggage limit of 15 pounds per person for carry-ons, which proved to be a challenge for most of the squad. After some reshuffling, everyone was checked in and ready to fly.
Our flight path took us directly over Baghdad, Iraq, which I found to be interesting. We landed in Doha, Qatar at approximately 10:00 p.m. and went without any issue. Due to the length of our layover (20 hours), the airline placed us in a hotel that was off-site. By the time we cleared customs and security, bussed to the hotel and got everyone checked in and setup, it was about midnight. We were incredibly blessed to have lodging at a hotel overlooking the stunning Persian Gulf, in this spectacular and rich country of Qatar.
Basking in our final showers, eating from the unlimited buffet and enjoying some really fulfilling and uplifting conversation, we were off once again to the airport at 6:00 p.m. on the 29th.
Check-in was a breeze, in-fact a bit too easy. I have quickly learned that the U.S. has by far the tightest airport security, which is not entirely surprising. The only thing separating those not flying to the people who had gone through security, was a single black stanchion and one unarmed man checking boarding passes.
Our second and final flight from Qatar to Hyderabad, India was again great and before we knew it at about 2:00 a.m., we were on the ground in India! Everyone got their baggage and squad leader Chelsea and racer Avery met us outside Customs. We took an hour bus-ride through the Indian countryside, to our squad ministry host India Christian Ministries (ICM). We arrived at approximately 5:30 a.m. on the 30th and trekked down the path as the sun began to rise in the distance. Chelsea informed us that we had mandatory breakfast at 8:00 a.m., which meant we had about an hour to sleep before we had to be back up. Logistics duties complete, this was certainly an exhausting but fulfilling and successful several days for my fellow Logistics Leaders and I.
We spent the day at ICM going through training and taking some time to rest and recuperate. Wake-up for travel was 5:30 a.m. on the 1st, as we had breakfast and loaded the two busses that would take us to our ministry locations. Per usual for Owen’s team, we were the first ones off the bus and furthest away from a big city and the rest of the squad. Following a 7-hour bus ride from ICM to our ministry city, we jumped off the bus, pulled out our packs and watched everyone drive away.
Our ministry contact got us on a “mini-bus”, which is essentially a 3-wheeled buggy. Following a 5-minute ride down an alleyway of sorts, we pulled up to our host church and where we will be residing until October 29.
From the time we left our hostel in Bucharest, to when we arrived at our ministry site in India, it took 76 hours in total travel from site to final site. 6 Buses, 2 Planes, and 2 Lodging locations.
We are living in the definition of “out in the sticks” this month. After just 24-hours being here… I already have another blog to write. I promise it is coming.
For now it’s off to ministry for the first time. (written last Wednesday. Ministry update coming soon)
Never felt, nor been, so far from home. Love and miss you all so much.
– Kev
