Departing the Pit Stop in first place at 1am, dating couple TK & Rachel opened their clue, which instructed them to fly 900 miles to Dubrovnik, Croatia and travel to the base of the Fort of St. Lawrence.
Walking into the airport with dating Goths Kynt & Vyxsin, TK & Rachel found all the offices and ticket counters closed,
so they searched on the Internet for the best flights. After discovering that Czech Airlines had the earliest flight out at 6am, TK & Rachel sat down in front of their offices, which wouldn’t open until 4:30am, while Kynt & Vyxsin continued to scour the Internet for other options.Deciding to make a reservation before arriving at the airport, father and daughter Ron & Christina chose to run from the Pit Stop to a nearby hotel, where the pair booked seats on LOT Polish Air departing Vilnius at 6:25am and landing in Dubrovnik at 11:20am. However, at the airport, the pair decided to join the line that formed outside the office for Czech Airlines
because they felt unsure about the tickets they bought. While waiting, the father and daughter tipped off siblings Azaria & Hendekea about the Polish Air flight and offered up the phone number to call. Later, Christina remarked, “Azaria & Hendekea are the only Team we completely trust.”A GAMBLE
Giving up their place in the Czech Air waiting line, the siblings ran off, hoping to connect to Polish Air with the number Christina gave them. Their simple plan to gain an advantage turned complicated when they couldn’t get through on the phone.
Now faced with being last in line at Czech Air, Azaria wanted to continue trying ways to call Polish Air, while Hendekea just wanted to return to Czech Air. When Hendekea accused Azaria of making all of the decisions for the Team, Azaria sternly replied, “Don’t give me your attitude, okay?” Now in last place at Czech Air, Hendekea lamented their decision to leave the line. This set off Azaria who fumed, “Just remember who worked his ass off. I made a bad decision. Get over it, alright?”MUSICAL CHAIRS
While the siblings dealt with their problems, dating Goths Kynt & Vyxsin inadvertently stirred up trouble for the other Teams. After their Internet research, the pair decided their best option would be a travel agency instead of waiting in line at Czech Air
with the other Teams. The clear advantage to their choice was getting service at the open agency while concerned Teams looked on in line at the closed Czech Air office. Jennifer commented, “Kynt & Vyxsin, they were getting in everyone’s heads.” Nate & Jen and Ron & Christina decided to walk over to see what the dating Goths found out, but eventually they chose to return to the Czech Air line, now behind TK & Rachel and formerly last place Nick & Don.When the Czech Air office finally opened at 4:30am, TK & Rachel purchased their tickets departing at 6am through Prague and landing in Dubrovnik at 11:20am. With time ticking away, Nick & Don also purchased the same tickets, but when Nate & Jen stepped up for service,
ticketing had stopped because it was time to board the flight. A panicked Nate & Jen ran over to the travel agency where Kynt & Vyxsin purchased the Polish Air flight that Ron & Christina had booked earlier, but had to wait while Azaria & Hendekea finished their transaction for the same flight. The couple sweated it out, but managed to book tickets on the Polish Air flight with the other three Teams.MAJOR MISTAKE
As Nick & Don and TK & Rachel departed on their 6am flight, everything appeared resolved for the Teams on the 6:25 flight to Dubrovnik, until Azaria & Hendekea walked up to the check-in counter. When asking for better seats, the shocked siblings learned they had been accidentally booked in business class, an illegal purchase on the Race. Tearing back up to the travel agency, the siblings begged and pleaded, but time had run out as the flight prepared for takeoff. Now faced with being hours behind, Azaria & Hendekea booked a flight to Dubrovnik through Frankfurt, but had a glimmer of hope when the agent told them that Prague, where TK & Rachel and Nick & Don were headed, had delays that would cause problems.
The agent’s observation proved correct as TK & Rachel and Nick & Don found an empty gate where their connection should have been. Now faced with a similar problem as Azaria & Hendekea, TK & Rachel booked a flight through Vienna while Nick & Don took one through Zagreb, both hours behind their original flight.
A ROCKY START
Landing in Dubrovnik at 11:20am, dating couples Nate & Jen and Kynt & Vyxsin got a jump on Ron & Christina out of the airport, but the two Teams wandered around the docks at the Fort of St. Lawrence unable to find the cluebox. This allowed Ron & Christina to take the lead as they discovered a Roadblock. In it, one Team member had to help in the renovation of the city walls damaged by the bombings during the Yugoslavian civil war of the 1990s. The Racer needed to search through a pile of 150 stones to find one of eight that fit into the wall.
Ron walked over to the huge pile of rocks and began trying to find one that fit. After a few misfires, he slid a stone into the wall that was a perfect fit, as Christina cheered in approval. Opening their next clue, the pair learned they had to make their way to the roof of the Fort of St. Lawrence and take a tandem zip line to the roof of Fort Borkar.ROW YOUR BOAT
With Nate & Jen and Kynt & Vyxsin still trying to find the Roadblock, Ron & Christina
suited up and held on for dear life as they sailed across the Adriatic Sea to Fort Borkar on the other side of the zip line. After the exhilarating ride, the father and daughter discovered a Detour waiting for them with a choice between Short & Long and Long & Short. In Short & Long, Teams must rappel down from the roof of the fort to the base and follow the marked path to a city wall that they had to climb with a rope ladder. Then, once at the top, they had to make their way through Dubrovnik’s Old Town to a plaza where they would find their next clue. The hard physical part of the task was short, but then Teams must navigate a long distance through the confusing streets to the plaza. In Long & Short, Teams must use a tandem zip-line to fly from the fort to the water below. Then, after swimming to a floating platform, they must choose a small fishing boat, row around the city walls to the old harbor, and run to the same plaza, where they would find their next clue. The hard physical part of this task was much longer, but the short distance to the plaza was far less confusing.As Nate and Kynt began searching for stones that fit into the city wall, Ron & Christina took another thrill ride on a zip line to the water below. After swimming to the platform, they jumped into a fishing boat in hopes of keeping their lead. Initially, Ron didn’t appreciate Christina’s suggestions or help, saying, “This is so ass backwards.” However, when it became clear that Ron couldn’t row the boat by himself, he offered Christina an oar to help, a gesture that surprised and touched her. She said, “I’m glad that my dad and I are doing this together.”
RELATIONSHIP ON THE ROCKS
The teamwork between Ron & Christina was in stark contrast to Nate & Jen, who began rowing with the hopes of overtaking the father and daughter. Lack of rowing experience coupled with a volatile relationship led to another blowup between the dating couple. The fighting escalated to the point where Jen shouted, “I’m never gonna to be with you ever again. I hate you with a passion.”
Their fighting carried onto dry land, even though the dating couple had overtaken Ron & Christina in a race for the cluebox. With first place on the line, both Teams needed a taxi to the next Pit Stop at the Stone Cross Overlook. Ron & Christina snagged a taxi ahead of Nate & Jen, whom a driver deemed too wet to take. Jen began crying as Nate tried to calm her. A frustrated Jen shouted, “It’s not okay! Our relationship sucks!”
TEAMWORK ON TOP
Pulling up to the Stone Cross Overlook, father and daughter Ron & Christina were greeted by a gun salute as they stepped onto the mat in first place. The thrilled pair learned from Phil that they had won a 12.5-foot catamaran. Later, Christina remarked, “My dad and I are living proof that success in The Amazing Race is about teamwork.”Arriving in second place, an already bad day turned worse for Nate & Jen when Phil told them they didn’t take a legal form of transportation to the Pit Stop, as they hopped into a private car. This allowed Kynt & Vyxsin, who scaled the city wall to snag second place, dropping the dating couple to third. After returning to the mat, Jen commented, “As far as Nate and I being together in the end, it’s unpredictable to me right now…I don’t know if it’s too late. We’ve been through a lot.”
A FIGHTING CHANCE
As TK & Rachel ran through the course alone en route to a fourth place finish, Nick & Don finally landed in Croatia, barely ahead of last place Azaria & Hendekea. Don struggled to find the correct stone to fit into the wall as the siblings approached the fort. After fitting the stone into the wall, the grandfather and grandson prepared for the zip line to Fort Borkar, when they spotted Azaria & Hendekea running to the cluebox for the Roadblock.
A stunned Hendekea shouted when she saw Nick & Don sailing across the sea, as a determined Azaria began putting stones in the wall saying, “We can’t let them beat us.”On the water, a slow and tired Don rowed the boat for his Team, as the siblings slowly began to creep up, choosing to row a boat as well. The more athletic Azaria used every bit of power he had in hopes of staying in the Race. Soon, Nick took over but the pair didn’t seem to be making as much headway as Azaria continued to close the gap. Nick & Don reached the shore ahead of the siblings,
but the duo walked the wrong way to find a taxi to the Pit Stop, instead turning into the confusing streets of Old Town. This waste of time closed the distance even more between the two Teams, who jumped into taxis only moments apart. While the taxi race was close, in the end, the grandfather and grandson slipped through in another extremely close finish for the duo.Arriving on the mat in last place, siblings Azaria & Hendekea received the bad news that they had been eliminated from the Race. Hendekea commented,
“Although my brother might be a little too hard on me, I know he just wants me to go as far as I can. I think our relationship will just get better and grow stronger.” Azaria added, “As a brother, I think part of my job is to challenge Hendekea, so for her to come out and show the intensity and fire that I hadn’t really seen ever before was quite stunning and I’m really proud of her for that.”
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