The Joy Bombs left Xenacoj Saturday afternoon and headed to Guatemala City to meet up with three other teams there and venture on to Country #2 on the World Race. What was going to be a short overnight bus ride turned into an adventure for 4/7 of A-Squad, but we finally made it to our Debrief location in Honduras last night, praise The Lord!!! And we learned a few valuable lessons along the way.
• “The bus will be there at midnight to pick you up” actually means “The bus will still be 90 minutes away at midnight”
• “It’s going to be a 10-hour drive” actually means “It’s going to be a 21-hour adventure and your bottom will become one with the bus seat”
• “We will not send you small buses; we will send you one big charter bus” actually means “We will send you small buses instead of one big charter bus”
• “The destination is six hours away from the border” actually means “The destination is eleven hours away from the border but it’ll take you thirteen because the bus will break down, and also we have no idea where we’re taking you”
• Crossing a border with 31 people will take you two hours, even if it’s 7:00 in the morning and there is nobody else there.
• Hiring drivers to drive you to a specific location does not necessarily ensure that they actually know where they’re going (at all), and they will confess this halfway through the trip when the bus breaks down.
• If your bus breaks down halfway across Honduras, the bus company you hired will suggest you take public transportation for the following four hours and pay for it on your own.
• Staying in your lane while driving? Ain’t nobody got time for that. Lanes are totally a driving suggestion and a waste of paint.*
• Driving on the shoulder of the road? Sure, why not. Let’s make use of this seemingly unnecessary space.*
• Passing other cars? Yes, definitely, all the time, especially when you get into the lanes going the opposite direction while doing so.*
• Passing a police vehicle is totally fine, especially when you cross the yellow line and get into the opposite lane of traffic as you speed by.*
• Passing cars at great speeds through dangerous curves is good too.*
• A 27-passenger bus really means “27 small children could potentially fit in this bus by making it a fire hazard, but let’s try to cram 27 grown Americans and all their luggage in here too because it’ll be fun”
• After about 15 hours of traveling, sitting on the edge of an open bus window feels infinitely more comfortable than a bus seat.
• “This is your bus. Enjoy!” translates to “This is The Little Engine That Could that can only go 3km/hr up any type of incline. The engine will overheat and start to smell, and the bus will break down halfway through Honduras. Enjoy!”
• “Debrief will start at 1:00pm on February 2nd” really means “Debrief will start on February 3rd because more than 50% of A-Squad, plus the Squad Leaders, will face some obstacles along the way and will not be able to get there on time”
• “We will have you in Valle de Angeles by 10:00am” really means “We will have you in Valle de Angeles at 10:15pm“
* Kids, don’t try this at home
Bottom line: WE MADE IT!!!!!! A-Squad is finally united again and will stay together for all of February. Debrief goes on until the end of the week, and then we’ll head over to Talanga, which is where we’ll be located for the rest of our ministry month. More updates to come soon!!
Love,
Raquel
If you would like to support me so I can continue on the World Race until November, please click the link above that says “Support Me!,” or send a check payable to “Adventures In Missions,” to Adventures In Missions, PO Box 742570, Atlanta GA 30374 (be sure to write Appealed by StewartRaquel on the memo line so it gets credited to my account!!).
