I’m so excited to be in South Africa! Being introduced to the culture has been so fun and it is very different from the Asian cultures we just left. Everyone is very energetic and outgoing which has been a little shocking as Cambodia and Thailand’ people were definitely more reserved in comparison. The World Race has a partner organization located in Jeffrey’s Bay, South Africa, called Global. Global has many different branches the way that Adventures in Missions (AIM) has branches. The World Race is one of AIM’s branches, and Global has a branch called the Global Challenge which is very similar to the World Race. The Global Challenge launches in January, however they do not have a set route and they will be on the field until December. The whole year costs $5000 total, compared to the $17000 we pay for the World Race. They also visit 11-15 countries, but we’ve been told for a year that they were able to go to 23 different countries! We have a tight budget on the World Race but Global is definitely the next level. They wait until flights go on sale and then they book. Not even leadership will know the next country they are going to. We have a meal budget of $5 per person for 3 meals a day. Global has a budget of $0.50 for 3 meals a day per person. The whole idea of Global is dependence on the Lord’s provision. Partnering with them in South Africa we have gotten to hear some pretty incredible stories. The whole Global team was in Taiwan and due to their budget, couldn’t afford to buy food. This meant they were all prepared to fast for 3 days, and then pool their money and buy two chicken nuggets a person on the 4th day, and repeat for their entire stay in Taiwan, which they had no idea how long they would be there. Instead, everyday while they were in Taiwan, a different ministry host or Pastor would ask to take the team out to a meal so that they could hear their stories of what life was like on the Challenge. They ended up staying in Taiwan for 3 weeks and never paid for a meal, but also never skipped a meal. They were able to use the money saved to fully fund the rest of their teammates. The Global Challenge also embraces hitchhiking their way through a country, as they do not have a transportation budget. Once they were split into teams of 5 people, given 5 days and $20 to share. They had to travel over 3500 km hitchhiking, to cross the nearest border, renew their visas, and cross back. They do have to pay for Visas out of their personal budget. I am so in awe of every person who has signed up for Global and really admire their dedication. It is described as a very stretching but rewarding experience. The host that tells us all of these stories did Global Challenge twice in 2018, and again in 2019. Every time the Challenge is mentioned he tells us how he would go back on the Challenge if the opportunity ever presented itself in a heartbeat.

I spent my first night in South Africa in the Globals Missions house, but due to Global needing to use that space, we have to move to a different location for January. We will then move back to the Missions house for February after the Global Squad has left. Our new hosts have also been giving us some critical information about Jeffrey’s Bay. There is a hole in the ozone layer so everyday the UV is 13+ and the sunburns can be brutal so we have to be very careful! Additionally, the mission's house is an hour walk from the beach, and there's a lot of bushes on the road leading to the house. We’ve been warned that there are “bush people”, people who live in the bushes, who will jump out when we walk by to mug us, and that we are not allowed out after dark unless we have a guy with us.

The first day of me being back in South Africa, Clara walked an hour back from the beach without shoes and got second degree burns on her feet. She could barely walk for the rest of the week and was told to stay off her feet as much as she could. The next morning we had to move from the Missions house to a “campsite” that is actually a really beautiful lodging location! It has bedrooms with bunk beds 3 beds high. The whole week has been like a big sleepover with all my friends. The best part is that it’s also located just across the street from the ocean. Our first week of ministry while settling into South Africa had us on kitchen duty which was so fun! My team spent the week cooking for all of the other teams who had ministries at different locations. We got to spend so much quality time with each other and had so much fun with dance parties as we made food and washed all the dishes.

In South Africa, our mentors have also decided that we will go through leader switches. There are six teams on the squad, and each team has its own leader. We’ve been with Alyssa since training camp. However after the leader switches, we will be with Leader Ethan. We’ve gotten to spend this first week with Ethan and it’s been so fun to have a new perspective on our team. We get to have him as our leader for one more week and then we will have another Leader for all of February!

January 6 - January 12 2024