Half of the World Race is about serving others, self-discovery and growing closer to God.
The other half of the World Race is creating ridiculous moments when you are like, "Wait a minute…what am I even doing?" and that is what this blog is about.
Owen, the leader of the other team we were partnered up with for the month, and I have had many great exploration moments in Bulgaria. Here are a few of my favorites.
The First Hour
When we first got to Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, our mission was to get to the bus station and meet our contact. The problem was that we got dropped off in a Central Park like location in the middle of the city, with no idea how to get to the bus station. So we decided to leave our packs with our team in the park and find Wifi. After trying numerous establishments with locked Internet, we started looking for people who spoke English. We asked bankers, insurance salesmen, Subway workers, and even one of the police officers that were waiting for the protestors that had been coming everyday for the last week. No luck! 30 minutes later, the Golden Arches of McDonalds glimmered with the hope of Wifi! We then lead a parade of Americans the 1.2 miles from the park to the bus station, packs and all!
The Lift
There was one point in time where Brady and Kim needed to get picked up from the train station and brought to the top of the mountain. "No big deal," we thought. The plan was simple…take the van down the mountain and to the train station and right back up. That plan worked well
until we couldn't get the van to start. The battery was dead. We looked around the camp for jumper cables, which are a rarity to find in Bulgaria. There were literally none on the mountain. Luckily, the van was a stick shift so if you get it started rolling, you can get it to run (which is a new fact for me). After about 5 attempts of pushing the van, we couldn't get it to work. (We had a very limited track to push it on because we were on the edge of a cliff.)
So the van wasn't an option. There was a man who was willing to let us have his van. Turns out his battery was dead too! What are the chances? So Iva, our quick thinking ministry contact, threw a plan together. We would take the lift down the mountain and grab a taxi. So we get to the lift and it is a long way down. The chairs are made of wood that seems to be less than stable and the metal safety bar is rusty. But I figure hey…it's sill running so it must be okay. We hop on, and made fit safely down the mountain, (Although, my fear if heights was on edge for about 15 minutes.) We walk a mile, get a cab, get to the station and get Brady and Kim. By this point, the lift is closed so Iva has to take the cab to her cousin's house to borrow his car to get us back up the mountain.
The Bulgarian Truck Stop/Adventures with Mimi
Coming from Sliven to Dobromirka, two people had to take a bus instead of ride in the van or car. Owen and I decided it would be best to prefer our teams and let them get a direct route to Dobromirka and we would take the bus.
There were four people from the camp on the mountain who were also traveling to Tarnovo, a city about 30km from Dobromirka. Mimi, who spoke English, would help us find the right bus and get off at the right stop. Once we got to the city, we would have to wait about an hour for Iva to pick us up.
So we get on the bus and are riding along for about 45 minutes when we pull off into a truck stop. Mimi explains that there is an accident further up on the road and we have to wait about an hour to clear it up. Owen and I wait about an hour in the truck stop (with Wifi!) and go to get back on. They tell us we have to wait another 1-2 hours before traffic is cleared. We go back into the stop and set up shop again. 10 minutes later we frantically get told that we are leaving again and have to hustle back to the bus.
So once we actually make it to our stop, Owen and I go to sit on the bench and wait. Mimi tells us we are suppose to come and wait with her so we grab a cab and go back to her apartment.
When we get to her building, we have to take the elevator to the sixth floor. This was the smallest elevator I have ever been in. It would probably fit two people comfortably. So Owen, Mimi and I get into this dark elevator with our bags and my face is smashed into the wall as Owen's pack rams my head. Turns out, this only a three sided elevator so the wall just moves right past your face.
We made it up safe and sound and then went right back down to explore the city! It was beautiful! We explored a park, some monuments and got some pizza at a outdoor restaurant.
