It was early December when I first found out about the World Race and boy was I fascinated! Before I was even accepted, I had already researched packing lists and read at least a hundred blogs. I just knew this was what God had in plan for me. The funny thing about being accepted to do the World Race in December is that a number of squads return in November, so I found myself reading many “end of the Race” blogs. End of Race blogs come in many types, but my favorite was quickly the “World Race by Numbers” blogs. I read so many of these and was fascinated by the statistics of what eleven months of life can look like.
[Disclaimer: This is only for me, as everyone on the squad has been on different teams and traveled to different cities within countries.]
Also, because the Race is officially over, I have included my favorite photo from each country!
So without any further waiting, here is my own finished World Race by Numbers blog:
Travel Order
Seattle, Washington > Atlanta, Georgia (launch) > Chicago, Illinois (layover) > Istanbul, Turkey (layover) > Sofia, Bulgaria > Svishtov, Bulgaria > Vidima, Bulgaria > Svishtov, Bulgaria > Levski, Bulgaria > Butovo, Bulgaria > Levski, Bulgaria > Svishtov, Bulgaria > Velico Turnovo, Bulgaria > Svishtov, Bulgaria > Draganesti, Romania > Bucharest, Romania > Draganesti, Romania > Bran, Romania > Brasov, Romania > Draganesti, Romania > Elbasan, Albania > Teg, Albania > Tirana, Albania > Elbasan, Albania > Tirana, Albania > Pisa, Italy > Florence, Italy > Pisa, Italy > Tirana, Albania > Elbasan, Albania > Tirana, Albania > Skopje, Macedonia > Thessaloniki, Greece > Athens, Greece > Lesvos Island, Greece > Athens, Greece > Durres, Albania (debrief) > Tirana, Albania > Istanbul, Turkey (layover) > Johannesburg, South Africa > Pretoria, South Africa > Johannesburg, South Africa > Lusaka, Zambia > Kabwe, Zambia > Ndola, Zambia > Luanshya, Zambia > Mpatapatu, Zambia > Luanshya, Zambia > Lusaka, Zambia > Choma, Zambia > Livingstone, Zambia > Lusaka, Zambia > Johannesburg, South Africa > Durban, South Africa > Leisure Bay, South Africa > Durban, South Africa > Nsoko, Swaziland > Mmbane, Swaziland > Nsoko, Swaziland > Hlane National Park, Swaziland > Nsoko, Swaziland > Mitilini, Swaziland > Nsoko, Swaziland > Johannesburg, South Africa > Atlanta, Georgia (layover) > Medellin, Colombia > Bogota, Colombia > Medellin, Colombia > Baños, Ecuador > Shell, Ecuador > Puyo, Ecuador > Guayaquil, Ecuador > Chiclayo, Peru > Lima, Peru > Cusco, Peru > La Paz, Bolivia > Lima, Peru (layover) > Miami, Florida > Malabar, Florida (one night) > Orlando, Florida > Denver, Colorado (layover) > Seattle, Washington
[Bulgaria – first grocery shopping trip success; Romania – our beautiful ministry hosts]
General Info
Days on the field: 320 (September 9, 2015 > July 24, 2016)
Continents: Europe, Africa, South America
Time Zones lived in:
• UTC+2 (Bulgaria, Romania, Greece, Italy, Zambia, South Africa, Swaziland)
• UTC+1 (Albania, Macedonia)
• CST (Colombia, Ecuador, Peru)
• EST (Bolivia)
Places lived in: 23
Passport stamps before: 2
Passport stamps after: 42
Teams on:
• Discover & Disciple (Bulgaria, Romania, Greece): Kim R, Kim R, Abbie, Louise, Rachael V, & me
• Christmas (Albania): Kim R, Abbie, Jami, Mallory, Leighton, Meggie, & me
• Hot Rod (Zambia, South Africa, Swaziland, Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia): Abbie, Louise, Catherine, Jon, Josh, Zack, & me
• Lima Llamas (Peru): Abbie, Nikki, Amber, Rachel P, Kim R, & me, plus Lauren, Sabrina, & Jacque
Within the squad:
People who have heard my testimony: 18
People whose testimony I have heard: 16
[Albania – the frequent kiddos who came to the feeding program; Greece – this sweet boy and I played with that yellow balloon for at least a half hour while he waited in line to get his tickets to leave the refugee camp]
Travel
Ferry Rides: 3
Time spent: 24 hours and 45 minutes
Train Rides: 8
Time spent: 16 hours and 10 minutes
Time spent in train stations: 5 hours and 10 minutes
Bus Rides: 40
Time spent: 340 hours and 20 minutes (OR 14 DAYS!!)
Time spent in bus stations: 23 hours and 25 minutes
Longest bus breakdown: 6 hours and 5 minutes (in Zimbabwe)
Flights: 14
Time spent on airplanes: 66 hours and 10 minutes
Time spent in airports: 36 hours and 25 minutes
Miles traveled by airplane: 29,999
Longest layover: 16 hours and 5 minutes (Atlanta, March)
Airports in: 14
Kinds of travel:
Plane, bus, ferry, coonbie, bicycle, walking, mini-bus, van, train, car, city bus, & taxi
Borders crossed, not by flight: 16
Bulgaria>Romania; Romania>Serbia; Serbia>Macedonia; Macedonia>Albania (2); Macedonia>Greece; Greece>Albania; South Africa>Zimbabwe (2); Zimbabwe>Zambia (2); South Africa>Swaziland (2); Colombia>Ecuador; Ecuador>Peru; Peru>Bolivia
Longest border crossing:
South Africa into Zimbabwe: 4 hours and 5 minutes
Most difficult border crossing:
Peru into Bolivia: 3 hours and 45 minutes; so much paperwork
Countries stepped in: 16, including the USA
Countries stepped in, including airports: 17, with two layovers in Turkey
Most people in a vehicle:
14 people in a 7 passenger SUV: Shell, Ecuador with our hosts
22 people in a 16 passenger mini-bus: Luanshya, Zambia; public transportation
[Zambia – riding an elephant was a dream come true; South Africa – we did a drive yourself safari with our hosts and spent the whole afternoon eating picnic style in the SUV, laughing, and singing Lion King]
Culture
Currencies used:
Lev (Bulgaria), Lei (Romania), Lek (Albania), Euro (Greece & Italy), Denar (Macedonia)
Kwatcha (Zambia), Rand (South Africa), Emalangeni (Swaziland)
Pesos (Colombia), USD (Ecuador), Soles (Peru), Bolivianos (Bolivia)
Wonders of the World seen:
Victoria Falls (Livingstone, Zambia)
Languages worshipped in:
Bulgarian (Bulgaria), Romanian (Romania), Albanian (Albania), Greek (Greece)
Bimba (Zambia), Zulu (South Africa), SiSwati (Swaziland)
Spanish (Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia), English (Greece, Ecuador)
[Swaziland – these boys did absolutely everything together so we named them the Boys Club]
Sleep
Beds slept in: 19
Bus seats slept in: 10
Plane seats slept in: 3
Months slept in my tent: South Africa & Swaziland
Nights slept in my Eno: 5
Hygiene
Times I got sick:
traveler’s diarrhea (Bulgaria)
common cold (Bulgaria, Romania, Albania)
stomach virus (Albania)
dehydration (Albania)
food poisoning – the whole team (Zambia)
W squad plague – almost all the girls on the squad (Swaziland)
altitude sickness – almost all of us (Bolivia)
Laundry in Europe:
washer and dryer: 3
washer and hang dry: 6
laundry take out: 1
Laundry in Africa:
hand washed: 5
washer and hang dry: 3
Laundry in South America:
washer and dryer: 6
washer and hang dry: 3
laundry take out: 3
Showers in Europe:
hot showers: 23
lukewarm showers: 3
bipolar hot and cold showers: 1
Showers in Africa:
cold bucket showers: 4
hot showers: 4
cold showers: 10
Showers in South America:
hot bucket showers: 2
hot showers: 16
lukewarm showers: 6
cold showers: 5
Days in a row without washing hair: 7 (Lesvos Island, Greece)
Days in a row without showering: 8 (Svishtov, Bulgaria to Draganesti, Romania)
[Colombia – our sweet, wonderful host family we lived with all month; Ecuador – Joshy and I adventured back to the crazy sketchy bridge we had adventured across earlier in the month]
Pack Weight
Bruce’s weight leaving USA: 43lbs
Bruce’s weight leaving Europe: 40lbs
Bruce’s weight leaving Africa: 38.5lbs
Bruce’s weight leaving South America: 39.8lbs (4ish lbs souvenirs)
[Peru – this sweet one showed more joy in life than anyone I’ve ever met;
Bolivia – the whole squad plus the leadership team at final debrief]
Miscellaneous
Books read: 88
Longest days without wifi: 15 (Swaziland), by choice
Times I shared my testimony: 8, plus many shortened & varied versions
Movies watched on planes: 13
Movies watched during downtime: 90, about half with other people or on sick days
Animals seen:
dogs, cats, horses, cows, sheep, donkeys, vultures, pigs, chickens, goats, baboons, hippos, elephants, giraffes, rhinos, zebras, warthogs, impalas, jackals, & lions
It has been a wild and crazy year, one filled with so many memories, so much laughter, so many lessons, and so much growth. I could not imagine sharing this journey with anyone other than W Squad and our leadership team!
