I apologize for how long it’s taken me to post this. We have very limited wifi and even so, I’m trying to soak up every last minute of my time left on the field. Here are answers to some of y’alls questions!
Do you find an interpreter in all of the locations you travel to or is English something they are able to understand a little?
-The answer to this question is hard, in some countries my team and I were left with no interpreter. In month one, our hosts didn’t speak any english and we couldn’t find anyone in town who could speak more than a few words so we relied heavily on Google Translate. Other months, our hosts had hired someone to translate for us the entire month who would travel with us to ministry everyday.
English is a universal language so most places we traveled, people spoke a little bit of English, especially in the bigger cities.
At any time in particular did you feel unsafe being in the different locations need it be with wildlife or with people themselves?
-I’ve come in contact with a few very poisonous snakes but most times I haven’t felt unsafe with the wildlife. As far as people go, in most places people are very friendly.
In some places people associate white people with money and we often became targets for theft. Some times I felt unsafe as some places we would be circled, cornered or sometimes harassed by the locals for money, food and sometimes sex.
Where was your favorite place to visit?
My favorite place that we visited was Bangkok, Thailand. We got authentic Thai experience while also experiencing city life in Asia! I also loved teaching English in the city and all of the street food we got to eat!
My favorite place that I visited for adventure day was Athens, Greece! It’s rich in history and it was so much fun to visit the many museums and the Acropolis!
What do you all do for fun when you aren’t spreading the gospel?
Traveling the world is fun and there is always an opportunity to experience new things like white water rafting on the Nile, visiting capital cities, visiting museums and learning about the culture, going on animal safaris, hiking, camping etc. One of my favorite adventures on the race was visiting San Pedro, Chile and mountain biking in the hottest non-polar desert in the world!
What do you feel like you will now cherish more when you return home?
-Traveling the world and experiencing the way others do things, i’ve grown in gratitude for how we do them at home. I have grown to appreciate running water, clean drinking water, washing machines and even consultant electricity. People around the world are very hardworking and utilize their resources to the best of their ability and that is something I can’t wait to bring home with me.
Where is the weirdest place you’ve slept?
-Travel day to Uganda definitely trumps the rest. We had to stay in the capital city (Kampala) over night before we could travel the 5 hours to our ministry site so our mini bus (carrying all of our packs and 21 of my squad mates) stopped in a gas station parking lot and slept there. However, the bus was not big enough for all of us so I slept outside on the sidewalk.
What is the weirdest thing you’ve eaten on the race?
-I ate a lot of unidentifiable bugs in Cambodia and totally loved it! Fermented fish wasn’t my favorite.
What have you learned throughout your world race, would you recommend it to others?
-I’ve learned a lot of things but what sticks out to me the most is learning who I am in the Lord and learning to depend only on Him. The World Race isn’t for everyone but for someone willing to radically change their life and perspective, it’s definitely worth it.
