International School Community Blog

“The Amazing Race” of International School Teaching

“If only my life could be like The Amazing Race!” I say that to myself all the time.

I can’t stop watching this show as it is like all my dreams coming true.  How cool would it be to travel around the world (for free), do amazing challenges with your teammate and interact in a very interesting and meaningful way with a variety of different cultures?

Many of my international teacher friends watch this show religiously. Why? Because I think we are attempting to do “The Amazing Race” in our lives abroad every time we book a flight for our next trip.  The international educator’s life is one step closer to the life of an Amazing Race contestant.  Luckily, we have more money and more vacation time to go on more trips.  Living in the United States, I was lucky to travel internationally once a year (and it was more like every 2-3 years).  Because of that fact, it will be some day when I decide to go back to live there.

Here are the countries that The Amazing Race has been to so far:

Who cries during the finale, when the winning team is running towards the final pit stop mat?  Actually, I get emotional at the end of any of the episodes; when the last team explains what traveling around the world with their teammate has meant to them.  I do like traveling by myself, but there is something quite special experiencing another language and culture in a foreign country with a good friend or your life partner.  I personally have some great memories about many of my trips that I have taken with friends.

The unfortunate thing is that the vast majority of us will never get to be on the Race itself while living abroad.  You need to be currently living in the U.S.  Also, you need to be able to leave your job for 2-3 months, and that is just not possible for most of us working at international schools.

How cool to meet someone though who has actually been on The Amazing Race?  I actually have met somebody (who is currently an international school teacher) who was on the Race!  It was the The Amazing Race though in Belgium.  She got in 2nd place!