Safety should always be on the minds of those leading international ministry teams. In our recent newsletter, we gave three broad suggestions for keeping your team safe.  Today, we share some additional ideas to further safeguard your group.

Be Alert

International travelers often get in trouble when they do not pay attention to their surroundings. It is a common ploy for thieves and others to use distractions in victimizing people. Pay careful attention to those around you, especially when in marketplaces, tourist areas or while using public transportation.

One common trick is for two thieves to work together—one to distract you and the other to steal from you. Sometimes the thieves are actually quite young! In Israel, for example, two boys about nine years old acted like they were rivals trying to sell postcards to tourists. When one got the traveler’s attention, the other boy would steal items from the tourist’s purse, bag or pocket. This kind of scenario is quite common all over the world.

If something doesn’t feel right or look right, remove yourself from the situation. If you see someone acting suspicious, or there is an unattended package in a public place, don’t stick around.

Don’t Be a Target

Keep valuables out of site and never flash money in public places. One suggestion is to keep money in separate places—maybe a little in a wallet and more in a pocket. This way you pull out just what you need at the time. Consider using an under-the-clothes waist or neck safe, as well as belts with zipper compartments, to keep your cash, passports and other valuables out of sight.

Leave expensive rings at home. If you’re married, consider getting a cheap gold band before you leave home and wearing it instead of your wedding ring.

Maintain a low profile when walking around—don’t be loud and boisterous or do things that will draw attention to you. 

No Food or Water from Strangers

Do not accept food or water from strangers, no matter how friendly they might seem. Several U.S. embassies, especially in African nations, report numerous incidents of foreign travelers being drugged by “friendly” nationals who gave them seemingly harmless food or water.

Transportation

Use only licensed taxis and discuss the fare before you get in. Do not ride deserted trains or buses and avoid night travel by car if possible. If you have to ride a bus at night, try to sit near the driver.

Hotels

It is best to avoid the first floor and the top floor of a hotel as this minimizes the chance of outside access. Also, some parts of the world have hotels that are taller than the equipment available to local fire departments, so consider lower floors if possible. Don’t leave valuables in the room and keep miscellaneous items locked in suitcases.

A little attention and awareness may mean the difference between a bad experience and a good one when traveling abroad. Be sure to remind your team of tips like these both in your pre-trip training and also in your orientation once you reach your destination.

While it is easy for international ministry team leaders to get caught up with logistics once they arrive on the field, it is important to step back and consider some over-all needs that your team has. Think of your ministry time abroad as having three parts: the beginning, the middle and the end. Each part requires a different emphasis by the team leader.

The early part of the trip is often filled with anxiety and uncertainty by team members, especially those who are rookies. While this may be old hat to you, remember that everything is new to them: new culture, new setting, and new people. It can be overwhelming to some. So your team needs a leader who early in the week seeks to calm them. The two best ways to do this are through information and organization.

Talking frequently about what to anticipate, both with the group and with individuals, can go a long way in calming nerves. Also, they are comforted when they see that you are organized and “on top” of things. How you handle challenges and changes sends a powerful message. If you are on edge, then your team will be on edge. They are watching you, whether you realize it or not!

In the middle of your trip, physical and emotional exhaustion can begin to set in. Be sensitive to this, and take particular note of how each team member is doing. You may need to encourage them to get more sleep, or you may need to carve out a little extra “down time” to get them over the hump.

On the emotional front, giving your team the opportunity to discuss their feelings and experiences helps them start processing the trip. This assists them in getting through the tough middle. Consider having an extended sharing time half way through the outreach where team members can tell about their most meaningful experiences.

As your time abroad winds down, you probably could put your team members into two groups. One would be comprised of those who can only think about getting home. The other is those who can’t imagine leaving. The first group needs to be encouraged to finish strong and to maintain their focus. Both groups need to begin looking beyond their experience to how it can impact them long term. They also need ideas for how they can continue their ministry even after they get home.

Regardless of the length of your trip, you will find your outreach flows through these three parts. Being sensitive to that and providing the right words and opportunities to your team at the right time will go a long way in ensuring an outstanding experience.

It’s not only the flights that are turbulent but the airline industry itself. Much of it is quite confusing to the everyday passenger. In our last blog, we looked at airline alliances and mergers and what they mean to you. Today we tackle the issue of code shares.

Code shares are one of the most confusing things for airline passengers. Simply put, a code share is when one airline sells seats on a partner’s flight and puts their own flight number on it. So you actually have one flight but with two different flight numbers. Yes, it is confusing!

In our last blog, we mentioned a scenario where a passenger tries to check in with American Airlines but is instead sent to British Airways. In that case, the flight is actually operated by British Airways but American sold the tickets and gave it an American flight number. The biggest issue for the traveler is knowing which airline to actually check in with.

The easiest way is to take note of who operates the flight. This typically will show on your itinerary or the agent will mention it to you. You can always ask your agent or the airline. Airlines usually want you to check in with the carrier actually operating the flight. Another way to know if it is a code share is to look at the flight number itself. Usually, if the flight number has four digits following the two letter airline abbreviation, it is a code share flight operated by a different airline. Airlines tend to use only three digits in their own flight numbers.

Code shares can cause confusion beyond just knowing which desk to go to. What happens if your flight is cancelled or there is a problem en route? Do you turn to the ticketing airline or the one you actually were flying on?

Technically, the airline that checks you in is responsible to get you to your final destination, regardless of whether the flight is a code share. Any refunds, however, come from the airline that ticketed you. This can create confusion between the two airlines and leave you stuck in the middle. It may mean a delay in getting that refund while the airlines sort it all out. There really isn’t anything the passenger can do about this, other than being persistent with the airlines to resolve your problem.

One of the advantages Ministry Travel clients have is that our specialists work aggressively on their behalf to try and solve these issues with the airlines. Instead of the passenger spending hours on hold with the carrier, we usually are able to cut through the red tape and bring resolution.

Alliances, code shares and mergers—common for airlines but confusing for passengers. As always, your Ministry Travel specialist is glad to help you sort through all of these so that you can make the best decision about your flight options.

As your plane begins its descent, the flight attendant comes on the intercom to thank you for choosing their airline, “a member of the One World Alliance.” One World Alliance? Sounds like a plot to take over the world. What is it? And more importantly, what does it mean to you as a traveler?

How about this scenario: You get to the airport and head to the American Airlines desk, because your itinerary has an American Airlines flight number. But the American Airlines agent tells you that you can’t check in with them—you have to go to the British Airways desk. They tell you it’s not really an American Airlines flight, but a code share flight with British Airways. What!? But didn’t your money go to American? What is this code share business anyway?

Does it seem like every time you pick up a newspaper that some airline is merging with another? Is that the same as code sharing or alliances? Again, what does this mean to you as a traveler?

Alliances, code sharing and mergers are all common in today’s turbulent airline industry. Let’s break these down and see how they relate to the passenger.

Mergers are the actual merging of two airline companies into one. This typically happens when one airline is either in bankruptcy or on the verge of bankruptcy, and they get bought by another airline. Sometimes it happens to strengthen the airlines and allow them to compete better.

Currently, Continental and United are trying to gain government approval for a merger that would make it the world’s largest airline. Northwest recently was taken over by Delta. In the past, American has gobbled up TWA. The merger list goes on.

So what does this mean for the consumer? It often means less competition, and therefore higher prices, at least initially on some routes. Also, for the first few months to a year after a merger, customers may experience difficulties as the airlines seek to merge systems. Trying to merge customer service centers and establish consistent policies are monumental tasks that usually have some hiccups along the way.

For the airlines, mergers mean the ability to streamline operations, save money, and add revenue. The Houston Chronicle, for example, reports that the Continental-United merger will eventually save the combined company more than $1 billion annually.

Alliances are basically airlines agreeing to work together on a substantial level with other airlines in an effort to extend their services and streamline operations. There are three major global alliances. The Star Alliance, anchored by United, Lufthansa, Continental and US Airways; Sky Team, anchored by Delta; and One World, anchored by American and British Airways.

For travelers, alliances often mean that you can get frequent flyer points on your favorite airline even though you are flying a different carrier. There are, however, lots of exceptions to this so you will need to read your airline’s particular policy.

In our next blog, we will tackle the very confusing subject of code shares. We’ll show you what they mean to you, especially when you check in for a flight or have problems with a flight.

Yes, you had multiple pre-trip meetings with your volunteer ministry team before heading out of the country. Yes, you discussed health, safety and a myriad of subjects. Now that you and your team are on the field, do you really need another orientation?

Absolutely yes!

You see, the trip becomes “real” to your team once they actually arrive. When it’s real then they listen—really listen.

So what’s the best way to do field orientation? First, try to meet with your team as soon as possible upon arrival at your destination. Remember, however, that your team probably will be tired from the long trip, so keep your comments brief and to the point. Focus on the immediate–particularly logistics, health and safety. Other details can be handled at breakfast meetings and other opportunities.

Logistics

Help orientate your team to where they are staying. Make sure everyone knows where to find you and other leaders. If staying at a hotel, remind your team about extra and often excessive charges that come from using the phone, laundry services, etc. If the hotel has a safe, then make arrangements to secure valuables like passports, unless they are required to be carried with you.

Make sure every person has a business card, matchbook or something from the hotel or place where you are staying that has the address and phone number on it. This will be invaluable if they get separated and lost.

Also make sure your team knows where meals and any meetings will take place.

Be sure to cover money issues such as how and where money be exchanged, and what items team members will need to purchase themselves and what will be provided for them.

Health

Discuss with your team whether or not the water is safe to drink. If it isn’t, then remind them to avoid ice and non-bottled drinks made with water. Also remind them to use bottled water to brush their teeth.

Discuss any food preparation concerns and the need to avoid street vendors.

Also make sure they know how to use the toilet. That sounds funny, but many toilets abroad work differently. Some, for example, require water to be dumped into them in order to flush. Some places do not flush toilet paper but rather provide cans for their disposal. So just make sure your team knows what is appropriate.

Safety

Review safety recommendations and discuss any concerns. Now that you are actually there, you may notice things that could become issues. Deal with these right away. Also, remind your team to stick together and not venture out alone.

The team field orientation is one of the most important things to do upon arriving at your ministry destination. Work through a checklist that covers the items mentioned above as well as any other issues relevant to your location. Even though you probably discussed all of these before leaving home, your team needs the reminders. They’re listening now!