We only had about a week in Kazakhstan but it was still eventful and fun. We started off in Almaty where we met up with the rest of our squad. The highlight of Almaty was seeing a 40 foot, $67,000 controversial statue of a squirrel. We also got kicked off a bus, but the upside was that I met a Real Live Disgruntled Citizen who was upset about the “waste of money” that was the squirrel.
Anyway, the reason we met in Almaty was because we’d all be travelling together for our long journey across Kazakhstan and the Caspian Sea to Baku, Azerbaijan. We went from Almaty to Aktau by bus, then from Aktau to Baku by ferry. Now please pause from this blog to look at a map. We had to make a detour around Uzbekistan, so it was even longer than the already long distance between those two places. The bus ride took 71 hours (including some time the final night spent parked and sleeping, but still on the bus). We’re on the ferry now. We got on about 30 hours ago. While the ride took only 21 hours we now need to wait indefinitely to go into the port, cause they can’t go into the dock if it is too windy. But all is well, we get free food on the ferry and it’s been great to catch up with the whole squad. I am really looking forward to the next few weeks. We have our debrief in Azerbaijan, then the Parent Vision Trip in Georgia. My parents won’t be there, but I am looking forward to seeing/meeting my squadmates’ parents. Excited to see you Mrs. Fasl 😉
Here are some prayer requests:
-Please pray that we would all finish the Race strong, not battling with travel fatigue or homesickness
-Please pray for my squadmates that are still fundraising
-Please pray that God would reveal the details of what I am meant to be doing after the Race
-Please pray for the salvation of my friends and family
-Please pray for ministry opportunities in our last few countries and for opportunities to share the Gospel with people who have never heard it before
-Please pray that we can get into Turkey!
Thanks for following me on this journey!
