This is written for future racers on a regular race route (not expedition). Disclaimer: My route was Central America, Africa, and Asia- Launched in August 2018, got home end of June 2019
1. Do not get an Osprey airporter… I repeat, do not get an Osprey airporter. For more deets, check out my blog “What’s in my pack?”
2. Might as well memorize your passport number now! You’ll have to know it for every single immigration form and sometimes use it to check into certain hostels.
3. Whatsapp will be your LIFE. Main form of communication. Download that and have your friends and family members do the same. You’ll be able to FaceTime family when you’re on WiFi, but the connection will be better on WhatsApp and it uses less data.
4. Make sure your phone is unlocked before you leave for the race. You may say you don’t want a SIM at all to stay present on the race, but WiFi is very hard to come by in Africa. I would have it unlocked just in case!
5. Budget laundry money! In a tourist town in Central America, one load is up to $15. Everywhere else it’s usually $3-5. I did laundry almost weekly. Sometimes you’ll hand-wash your laundry and save money, but each load will take about 1-2 hours by hand. If your preference is that you hand-wash laundry, know there isn’t always a space to do so. It just depends!
6. I consulted my squad on this and we would suggest you budget at least $2200 for spending money, which is $200 per month. In some months you’ll spend more, in some you’ll spend less. I remember someone telling me I could get by with $1000 in spending money and that’s nearly impossible.
7. Bring some hand-written notes from people, but don’t open that invitation up to everyone cuz that gets heavy.
8. Bring 6-7 bath and body works hand sanitizers. Stay clean and smell like a girl 🙂
9. Download google hangouts BEFORE you leave for the race and use it to make calls to the US. Whatsapp is great, but you won’t be able to call your bank, pharmacy, or other places you can’t reach by WhatsApp.
10. Maps.me is a great app to have. It’ll allow you to download the map of the area you’re in and then once downloaded, you can access it offline.
11. Download the Grab app BEFORE you leave for the race because you’ll need to confirm your mobile number with a text which you won’t be able to do once you leave. It’s basically Uber for Asia.
12. AirDrop will be a lifeline on the race… but for your future android usin’ friends, download the app ‘share it’ so you’ll be able to share pictures and videos with them.
13. Marco Polo is another good app to download and tell friends and family back home about. It’s basically a video walkie talkie. Do this one before you leave the states as well.
14. Having a Venmo and/or PayPal account is crucial before you leave. Don’t know what racers did before Venmo was a thing.
15. You won’t be able to find tampons or contact solution anywhere, so bring a year supply of both if that applies to you. *diva cup is worth the hype*
16. Some of the best advice I got was to bring 20+ pairs of underwear (I had 4 new pairs of underwear to open month 6 and it was the happiest)
17. Baby wipes = World Race gold… you don’t even know! But only bring one package to start because you can find baby wipes EVERYWHERE.
18. Don’t bring a million back up toiletries. You can pick up pretty much everything along the way! I read that everywhere, but didn’t quite believe it. For the sake of your pack weight, please believe me. You will see grocery and convenient stores SO often.
19. Thank your treasurers and logistics team every chance you get. They do SO much to serve your team and squad and deserve all the gratitude.
20. Don’t give into FOMO on the race. If you need rest, stay back from adventure day.
21. Bring a toothbrush cover
22. Have your raincoat in an extra small packing cube- it makes it easy to throw in your bag for the day
23. Bring an empty medium packing cube. This will be great for packing a change of clothes in your daypack on travel day
24. Three things I couldn’t imagine the race without: hydroflask, external charger, and my chacos
25. A lifeproof case for your phone is probably a good idea!
26. Bring one bottle of sunscreen and one bottle of bug spray to start.
27. Always pack socks in your day pack for travel day! Busses and airplanes get cold.
28. Label your airporter with a bandana, duct tape, or something bright so you can easily spot your bag
29. You’ll change up your wardrobe along the way so don’t buy very many new clothes for the race.
30. Having a Kavu or purse that’s smaller than your daypack will be reaaaally helpful. I imagined carrying my backpack around so much more than I have.
31. Ok this is a HUGE ONE!!! Please please please DO NOT talk about how much money you dropped on your adventure day or snacks or your favorite Nike sweatshirt in casual conversation around your hosts or people you’re ministering to. Know your surroundings. You mentioning you just spent 17 dollars on a SIM card and data in front of a family that lives on 17 dollars a month is not a good idea. Awareness is key.
32. Remember people’s names! Such a simple thing that carries a lot of weight. It makes people feel valued and respected when you remember their name. In each country I’d have a running tab of names on my notes app to help me remember them. I highly suggest it! You’ll meet a lot of people in a short period of time.
33. Instead of saying, “May I help you?” say, “How can I help you?” I’ve noticed this to be a great switch up in language especially with hosts in other countries who are too shy to ask for your help.
34. Bring a little bit of foreign currency to Sunday church services for the offering
35. Have 2-3 pillow cases: one to protect your pillow on travel day that you can then take off and use for dirty laundry
36. You may want to bring ear plugs the first time you visit a new church. Some places in the world really value a booming speaker system with a noise level I may never recover from
Central America
1. the WiFi password is usually always on the receipt. You have to buy something to get WiFi. Remember this when you’re budgeting!
2. Bug spray is super necessary here! Don’t do the aerosol can because it’ll run out quicker. Here’s a pic of my favorite bug spray:
3. My advice is to not get a SIM card in Central America. There’s plenty of places to get WiFi and you’ll be more present and thank yourself later for not getting one.
4. If you’re not familiar with spanish, learn some simple phrases before you go. It means a lot to people when you learn a few words or phrases in their language.
Africa
1. A good conversation starter is to ask people how many languages they know. A lot of people know around 10!
2. Your main form of ministry will be preaching and evangelism. A good idea before going to Africa is to brainstorm sermon ideas. I kept a piece of paper in my bible as a reference to certain bible verses by topic for evangelism which was really helpful. 
4. Bring a little bit of the local currency to church for the offering. We were told that this is a respect thing, especially in Africa.
5. You’ll have to cover your knees most of the time, and sometimes your shoulders. Remember this on travel days in Africa as well. Be as culturally sensitive as possible.
6. One of my favorite things to do was buy tennis balls in each country in Africa and give them away to kiddos I bonded with. They are light and didn’t take up a lot of room because I would give them away soon after I picked them up each time. You can usually find these at a grocery or convenient store.
7. Maybe don’t ship things home from Africa. A couple of my squad-mates did and the package never made it. (Never ship a full journal home! That is a treasure you don’t want to risk losing!)
Asia
1. Most of the time, you’ll be in a culture that emphasizes shame and honor. Just as people have a person-ality, cultural groups share a group-ality. A groupality is an “organized pattern of behavioral characteristics of a group.” In Asia, people value living a life of honor, so that usually means being very respectful, polite, and gentle. People experience shame not only individually but also collectively when someone has done something dishonorable. So know it may be difficult for people you’re building relationships with to share struggles, testimonials, or be vulnerable. Along with honor is honoring anyone older than you. Be extra kind and gracious to anyone you encounter that’s older.
2. Be aware of your squad and team’s noise level in public places, lol. Americans are known for being noisy. Asians are generally very quiet.
3. People older than you may need to be addressed by a certain title, so always ask when getting associated with a new culture. For example, in the Philippines an older man is “Kuya” and an older woman is “Ate.” When I say old, I don’t mean elderly. This is for anyone older than you, even by a few years.
4. Feet can be seen as offensive so make sure you’re aware before you go into a country if that’s the case. Showing the bottoms of your feet or putting feet up on a table can be rude. In Asia, it’s normal for people to take their shoes off before entering an establishment, even at restaurants.
5. Everything is cheap in Asia so get ready for new clothes and lots of good food!
