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DISCLAIMER: I am coming off little sleep, thanks to a bout with strep throat. Therefore, my sarcasm may come across as more harsh than playful. Here is my blanket apology for that. Now, it’s off to the races.

As the teams prepare their sleeping accommodations, the show decides to highlight the complaining and ungrateful attitude of Ernie & Cindy. Between the two of them, they sarcastically express "gratitude" for their mosquito nets, foam mattresses and straw roofs. At least, they refrain for saying this in front of the people who live in that same Malawi village, every day and not just for one night.

Andy & Tommy remind us at the start of the race that even though they got first again, it’s the third time it has happened because someone else messed up. The folly of others is their fortune, it would seem. (I think I just wrote my first fortune cookie there.)

The clue points them to a bus depot, where they get to take a two hour bus ride to the village of Salima. It seems that everyone has enough time to make it to the bus before the next one leaves at 7 a.m., save for Amani & Marcus, who leave the mat last a little after 6 a.m. Oh yeah, there are extra incentives for Team NFL to get on that same bus: Their non-elimination-induced Speedbump AND a double U-Turn.

My money’s on Team Dude being one of the unlucky teams U-Turned. If not, and they could have been, then these others teams just aren’t playing the game and deserve to lose. I also predict that there will be at least two teams that say something about the using the U-Turn as not playing fair.

The drama is short-lived about Amani & Marcus’s bus-catching skills this Malawi morning as they barely make it in time.

Continuing their earlier ranting, Ernie & Cindy are now complaining about the bus being overcrowded and the overall distaste they have for this 'primitive' place where they are. On the opposite end of the likability spectrum, Marcus uses the bus ride to take in where they are. He even comments that this was a time to take stock of everything they have back home and how fortunate his life in America is. See, Ernie & Cindy, that’s how you experience life beyond your non-mosquito net having, radiant barrier roofed, pillow-top mattress using life back home.

The bus pulls up and the teams are scanning the crowd for the next clue. They all must sigh a bit of a relief to see that bobbing around in the crowd is a sign for Amani & Marcus’s Speedbump. The clue for the rest of them holds this leg’s Roadblock. Someone has to pick a bicycle taxi and pedal a passenger to a location. Drop him off and return with payment to get their clue. Depending upon the street markers, this could be a rough one, especially when heading back to the depot without someone to potentially help navigate.

For this Roadblock, we have Laurence, Jennifer, Andy, Cindy, Cathi and Sandy. Since all the women opted for this one, I guess that bike riding is woman’s work too. Right, Laurence? Right? I really just wanted to remind you about his comments last week.

Team NFL rips into their Speedbump clue and it’s straight out of Survivor. They have to complete a slide puzzle in the image of the Malawi flag. Amani takes the reins on the puzzle and a crowd begins to form around them as they work through the task.

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