As I relay stories about my travels I frequently hear the same response; "How cool, I wish I could experience this with you." So, I'd like to invite you into a day in my life on the World Race. First, you're going to need to go put on every article of winter clothing you own.
Seriously . . .
Otherwise you're just not going to get the full experience.
OK, now go find someone roughly half your weight and carry them around on your back.
All set?
OK, now you need to strap two or three bags of potatoes to the front of you and you're ready to go.
This is how our team of 7 began our day of travel from Romania to Bulgaria.
We all piled into a small taxi and made our way to the train station. Half way there our fearless leader realized he left the charger for his camera plugged in at the house. There was no time to turn around, so we made a few phone calls and prayed everything would work out okay. We bought our tickets, hobbled outside where a friendly neighbor was just arriving with the charger, and waited excitedly for our train. That's when the fun began – remember how bundled up we are – The train pulled up to the tracks and we all looked at each other in bewilderment as we realized the steps to get on the train were, without exaggeration, at least three and half or four feet off the ground. Although it appeared we were filming a 3 Stooges episode, we all made it safely onto the train just before it pulled out of the Radna Train Station.
We hoisted our bags up onto the overhead shelves and tried to hunker down for some shut eye. Unfortunately, every time the train slowed down it made a loud grinding noise and when it came to a halt it nearly threw me from my seat. Between that and my inclination to always keep one eye open for fear that someone would steal our stuff if we fell asleep, I remained awake for most of the ride to Craiova (about 7 hours).
Initially we had the entire car of 12 seats to ourselves which was nice because racers tend to spread out and explode everywhere they go. This day was no different. We quickly filled up the space, each of us taking over two seats seats for ourselves, and two even spreading out to sleep on the floor. Needless to say, we received quite a few disenchanted glances from people boarding the train throughout the night. About 2 hours into our journey (roughly 10 pm) a mysterious, sort of creepy man who had been sitting in a completely empty car all by himself, meandered into our car and sat down. Why would anyone want to leave the comfort and serenity of a train car all to themselves and trade for a car full of young adults who clearly don't know the first thing about social etiquette? Who knows, but I decided I needed to keep an eye on him.
Sometime around 1:00 am our car filled up with people speaking Romanian and looking at us crossly. It didn't take long to figure out that we were sprawled out all over the seats they had paid to sit in. So we gathered our things as best we could and made room for them to sit. Our next impending challenge was figuring out when and where our stop was. It took a lot of gestures and charades but we eventually got an answer. "2 more stops." Of course we got the same answer again at the next stop, and the next. We finally met a very kind gentleman who spoke English. We chatted with him for a while and explained what we were doing traveling around the world. He told us our stop was next an dew said our goodbyes. As the train slowed down one of my teammates, Michelle, started throwing her bags off in an effort to de-board in a timely manner. As soon as she did this, one of the women from the train started waving her hands and yelling something in Romanian. "Oh," said our new friend. "Sorry, this is not your stop." Michelle then jumped off the moving train, threw her pack back on, and leaped on board in the nick of time. This is what happens when you don't speak the language, you're traveling with all your winter clothes on, you have two packs to lug around, and it's 2:30 am. in Eastern Europe.
When we finally arrived in Craiova it was nearly 3:00 am, cold, and snowing. We shuffled into the enclosed but unheated train station where we spent the next 5 hours waiting for our final train. We piled our bags into a corner, set up a human barricade all around them, and tried to fall asleep. It didn't take long for the cold to permeate our bodies. We moved closer and closer together for warmth to no avail. As we shivered into the early morning hours, an elderly Italian man stopped by to try an make conversation. We couldn't understand ANYTHING he said, but he did end up telling us he loved us, which was kind of awkward . . .
At 8:00 am we boarded our next train. It was disgusting, old, rickety, dirty, falling apart, and smelly. The seats were wood covered in vinyl, most of which was torn. The three guys in the seat next to me were clearly hung over and smelled like a skunk. Despite the discomfort and shabby condition of the train, I managed to fall asleep with one leg sprawled over top of my pack and the other hanging out in the aisle. Not quite three hours later we arrived in Calafat. Once again laden down with all of our clothes and packs we began the 20 minute walk to the ferry which would take us across the Danube and into Bulgaria. It was at this point that I began to question my decision 4 weeks earlier to follow a 23 year old boy and jump off the balcony of a two story building into the snow. If I had to guess I would say I have a hairline fracture in my left foot – oh the joys of travel.
We made it to the ferry station, got our passports stamped, and quickly realized there was nowhere for us to go. There was no little restaurant, no waiting room, not even a bench to sit on. That's when we realized this was a cargo ferry. The people that got on this boat were normally inside a truck, so they didn't need a place to come in from the cold. So we walked down to the water, sat on some rocks, and waited to board. In the mean time I needed to find a bathroom. Not too far away, in trashy alleyway, behind some run down trailer offices, I found one. It was a squatty. For those of you who don't know what that it is – well, it's basically a hole in the ground. You squat down low and pee. Now, remember, I still have on every piece of winter clothing I own. I did take my pack off for the event, but there were still quite a few layers to take into consideration. In the end I managed to aim well enough to keep all my clothes dry. Unfortunately I can't say the same for my boots. I'm just glad I was wearing them and not my flip flops.
On the way back to the waterfront I found a little door that said, "Coffee" so I went in to reward myself for surviving the squatty potty. I was disappointed to fin that it was just a coffee dispensing machine – you know, the kind where you put the money in, the cup falls down, then the coffee, sugar, and milk. But, I figured it was hot and I could use the caffeine. Unfortunately there was no dollar slot and I only had paper money. I walked over to the man working at the counter and asked him if he spoke English. "Yes." And, could he give me change? "No." After he stared at me for at least 5 seconds he told me the machine didn't take money. I had to buy tokens. Oye! Couldn't he have just told me that to begin with? I bought my token, got my 2 ounces of mediocre instant coffee, and headed back to wait for the ferry.
When the boat arrived we our packs back onto our shoulders and sauntered on board. Aside from three scary looking, mafia type men, we were the only people on the boat who were not driving one of those big trucks that carry a whole bunch of cars. We were cold, tired, and very out of place. Luckily, it did not take long for us to cross the river. But once we got off the boat we still had to walk another 15 minutes to cross the border into Bulgaria. Once we got here our contact met us and took us to our new home – a small apartment just the right size for one person, which 7 of us are sharing. there are two of us on the sofa bed, two in a double bed, one on a single air mattress, and two on a sofa bed mattress on the floor – That's World Race style folks!
All I wanted to do when we got to the apartment was curl up in my flannel pi's and go to sleep. Unfortunately – by now this should not be surprising – there was no heat in the apartment, so it was far too cold for me to change out of my layers. I kept them all on, added a sleeping bag, and tried to rest. No luck. I was too cold to sleep. I got up and sat in front of the single space heater we were given to get warm. We ended our day with pizza at a local restaurant in Vidin, Bulgaria – The poorest country in the European Union. Once our bellies were full and our feet were warm we all headed back to our frigid apartment and hunkered down for the first real sleep we'd had in over 24 hours.
This is my life. At least it has been for the last 7 months. Thanks for reading my blogs and keeping track of where in the world I am. I hope you've enjoyed "traveling" with me and experiencing what World Race life is like .
