Let’s walk to Thailand!! (Hong Kong continued)

Written by Torbjørn C. Pedersen on 01 July 2021.

Day 2,822 since October 10th 2013: 194 countries out of 203. No flight, no return home, min 24 hrs in each country and 1 pandemic!

(The opinions expressed on this site are my own, and do not reflect the position or policies of the Danish Red Cross which I represent as a Goodwill Ambassador).

The July challenge!! Please join! :)

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While there continues to be no other way out of Hong Kong other that flying, we might as well make the best of our time here. July will be dedicated to The New Zealand #RedCrossJourney. And I would really, really, really appreciate it if you would join in.

Last week’s entry: Table for one please… (Hong Kong)

In last week you could read about the pain and loneliness I felt as my wife returned home to Denmark. It is almost two weeks ago since I brought her to the airport, and as it is with many things in life, time does eventually ease the pain. I am feeling better but I still miss her. And fortunately, she misses me as well. While this entry is truly long in terms of how far you need to scroll to reach the end…it is really a very short read. Earlier this week I decided to enter the full list of countries which we have been to…simply as a reminder of our accomplishment thus far. 194 is just a number until you go through the full list. So enjoy, scroll down for a while…and then a while longer…

Denmark

Germany

Netherland

Belgium

Luxembourg

France

England

Wales

Ireland

Northern Ireland

Scotland

Spain

Portugal

Andorra

Monaco

Italy

Vatican City

San Marino

Liechtenstein

Austria

Switzerland

Slovenia

Croatia

Bosnia & Herzegovina

Serbia

Hungary

Slovakia

Czech Republic

Poland

Lithuania

Belarus

Russia

Latvia

Estonia

Finland

Sweden

Norway

Faroe Islands

Iceland

Greenland

Canada

United States of America

Mexico

Belize

Guatemala

El Salvador

Honduras

Nicaragua

Costa Rica

Panama

Colombia

Ecuador

Peru

Bolivia

Paraguay

Chile

Argentina

Uruguay

Brazil

Guyana

Suriname

Venezuela

Trinidad & Tobago

Grenada

St. Vincent and the Grenadines

Barbados

St. Lucia

Dominica

Antigua

St. Kitts & Nevis

Dominican Republic

Haiti

Jamaica

Cuba

Bahamas

Morocco

Western Sahara

Mauritania

Senegal

Cape Verde

Guinea-Bissau

The Gambia

Mali

Guinea

Sierra Leone

Liberia

Côte D'Ivoire

Ghana

Togo

Burkina Faso

Niger

Benin Republic

Nigeria

Cameroon

Chad

Central African Republic

Gabon

Congo Republic

São Tomé & Príncipe

Equatorial Guinea

Democratic Republic of Congo

Angola

Namibia

Botswana

South Africa

Lesotho

Swaziland

Mozambique

Zimbabwe

Zambia

Malawi

Tanzania

Comoros

Madagascar

Seychelles

Mauritius

Burundi

Rwanda

Uganda

South Sudan

Kenya

Ethiopia

Somalia

Djibouti

Sudan

Eritrea

Egypt

Malta

Tunisia

Libya

Algeria

Albania

Greece

Macedonia

Kosovo

Montenegro

Romania

Moldova

Ukraine

Bulgaria

Turkey

Cyprus

Lebanon

Syria

Jordan

Iraq

Kuwait

Iran

United Arab Emirates

Oman

Yemen

Qatar

Saudi Arabia

Bahrain

Israel

Palestine

Georgia

Azerbaijan

Armenia

Afghanistan

Turkmenistan

Uzbekistan

Tajikistan

Kyrgyzstan

Kazakhstan

Mongolia

Pakistan

India

Nepal

Bhutan

Bangladesh

Myanmar

Thailand

Laos

China

North Korea

South Korea

Japan

Taiwan

Vietnam

Cambodia

Malaysia

Singapore

Indonesia

Brunei

Philippines

East Timor

Papua New Guinea

Solomon Islands

Kiribati

Nauru

Fiji

Marshall Islands

Micronesia

Yes! That is quite a list. And each of those nations could be the best in the world and have been promoted positively. I have met kind people in them all. And here we now are in Hong Kong, which was meant for nothing more than transit. But more than 500 days later Hong Kong has become so much more than that. Our final nine countries are:

Palau

Tuvalu

Vanuatu

Samoa

Tonga

New Zealand

Australia

Sri Lanka

Maldives

So far, we have spent 7 years, 8 months, 3 weeks, and 2 days traveling to 194 countries. The overall distance has accumulated to 307,686km (191,187mi), mostly by means of public transportation along with the additional commercial ships. The distance we’ve covered surpasses 7.5 journeys around the equator!! All done without flying, without returning home and by spending more than 24 hours in each country. Logistics, logistics, logistics…and a fair amount of bureaucrazy as well.

I have a favour to ask you! Will you please register and join our group in the New Zealand Red Cross Journey? It would mean a lot to me. I am hoping to find 300 who will sign up. So far, we are six in the group: Jakob, Poul, Jesper, Kenneth, Ultra-Wifey and myself. We have pledged to cover the distance of a refugee journey. More specifically the one from Myanmar to Thailand. The distance is 1,175km (730mi). Within the Red Cross Journey three other refugee journeys are highlighted: Beirut – Damascus, Afghanistan – Pakistan, and Cox’s Bazar – Naf River.

We will be raising funds for humanitarian work through this challenge, while raising awareness about the incredible journey’s refugees embark on. Back in February 2019 we actually took the Saga from Myanmar to Thailand. Albeit by the convenience of a bus. Throughout July 2021 my friends and I are covering the journey as a group – I hope you will join. Registration is only NZD 10 (USD 7). We could really use your contribution. Thank you.

As a goodwill ambassador of the Danish Red Cross, I always seek to find ways in which the humanitarian work of the movement can be highlighted. I have paid a visit to national societies in 189 countries and I have written more than 100 unique Red Cross Red Crescent stories which have been sent to the Danish Red Cross. When I heard about the New Zealand Red Cross Journey, I immediately found it to be a perfect match for Once Upon A Saga. I have personally pledged to walk/run/hike 425km (264mi) and raise NZD 150 (USD 105). As a group we are raising NZD 3,000 (USD 2,095). Apart from the obvious connection between my role as a goodwill ambassador and this challenge, it will also serve as a motivator for me to get up and out the door every day. In order for me to cover the distance I must do approximately 13km (8mi) every day throughout July. And I figure I’ll do the Hong Kong Trail (47.5km/29mi) once every weekend. That should also get me ready for my attempt to do the Hong Kong Trail in less than 6 hours. Okay, enough about the challenge for now. But, please sign up. Thank you.

New challenge - new shoes. The VL-group in Singapore kindly gave me some money after the talk last week. So I got myself a new pair of Salomon Trail Running shoes! :)

And the week that went? Well, there’s been a lot of work in the Danish Seamen’s Church, it has been raining a lot, I worked out how to order groceries online (haven’t tried yet), I’ve been skyping with friends, I’ve done a few hikes, social media has been managed, there have been a few interviews, and I have had focus on finding a way out of Hong Kong (it is not easy). Here are some photos for you.

The annual Sank Hans Junk-Trip hosted by the Danish Chamber of Commerce and the Seamen's Church. 4 boats and 80 people!

Delivered some goods to the crew onboard the good ship Maersk Essen. She's a big lady! Look at this gangway!

Ammie baked cake for the match between Denmark and Russia. It was shown on a big screen at the Seamen's Church.

And the Danes just keep on winning!! :)

The weather has been lousy but the hiking has been good.

Poul and I finished a long hike early in the afternoon. We had lunch and hydrated with three large beers (each). I returned home in good spirits and had a lot of fun washing the floor of my apartment and replying to emails. A few of those emails may have been a little strange ;)

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And these gyys? Yeah, the make it so much easier to be stuck in Hong Kong. Good friends! And most of them signed up for the NZ challenge.

I would like to thank our esteemed partners for their invaluable contributions to Once Upon A Saga: DB Schenker Denmark, Kameli, Red Sand Solutions, Salomon, the Danish Red Cross and Ross DK / Geoop

Hi Res with Geoop