The Amazing Race 38, Episode 11

Season 38 Episode 11 (Wednesday, December 3rd, 2025) Info: “The final four teams race through Moulin Rouge, the Eiffel Tower, and other iconic Paris locations.”

In this penultimate eleventh episode of The Amazing Race Season 38 (U.S. Edition), the four teams flew on the same flight from Milan, ITALY 🇮🇹 to Paris, FRANCE 🇫🇷. They visited the famous Moulin Rouge (“Red Mill”) and performed a fast-paced choreography to the tune of Orphée aux enfers with the Moulin Rouge ladies. Teams then visited the world-renown Notre Dame Cathedral ✝️ which suffered an unfortunate fire in 2019. The twelfth century French Gothic architectural masterpiece dedicated to Virgin Mary was majestically restored in December 2024. The next stop 🛑 on teams’ itinerary was the National Institute for Blind Youth (Institut National des Jeunes Aveugles) — the first school for the blind in France and among all Western countries.

Teams encountered a Roadblock 🚧 challenge known as “Who Thinks They Know Their Type?”. Teams used a Braille typewriter to decode and type out a famous phrase from the Statue of Liberty 🗽 which includes “give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free”. Most teams typed away for quite a while because they would be so close to getting the paper correct but sometimes had just one spelling mistake — and had to type the whole poem again. The next task of the day sent teams on a scavenger hunt throughout Paris to look for three Statue of Liberty replicas. At each of the three locations, teams received a plastic 3D “puzzle piece” 🧩 of the French tricolor flag; they put the three pieces together to reveal an engraving and name of the Pit Stop. For this challenge, teams went near the Pont de Grenelle bridge 🌉, to the Jardin du Luxembourg garden ⛲ (colloquial name: le Luco), and to the Musée des Arts et Métiers (Museum of Arts and Crafts) 🖼️.

The particularly picturesque Pit Stop of this episode occurred at the Place du Trocadéro which is an ideal vantage point to view the Eiffel Tower 🗼. Teams encountered host Phil Keoghan as always but were also met with silence… a mime was there! Jag and Jas arrived first at the Pit Stop as usual; they won an exciting trip to FIJI 🇫🇯. Kyland and Taylor arrived second, but the show did not reveal whether Adam and Joseph or Izzy and Paige arrived next and who therefore stayed in the competition. However, I will do that now. There is definitely a spoiler alert below! If (at this time) you don’t want to know who made it to the finale episode, please skip the bottom of this post.
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
Adam and Joseph arrived to the Pit Stop in third place and therefore made it to the finale episode! Izzy and Paige arrived in fourth and were therefore eliminated from the The Amazing Race. They expressed gratitude for having a wonderful journey to the various places they visited and the memories they made.

Independence Day in Fiji

People all across FIJI are celebrating their country's Independence Day today. Fiji achieved independence from The United Kingdom in 1970. Happy Independence Day!

Fiji Exports

The following items are major exports of FIJI: bananas, cassava, clothing and textiles, coconuts, coconut oil, copper (small amounts), gold (small amounts), molasses, rice, seafood, silver (small amounts), sugar, sweet potatoes, and wood. According to the International Monetary Fund (data.imf.org), countries and territories buying and importing most of those exports (February 2017 statistics) include the United States (top importer), Australia, Portugal, Tonga, New Zealand, Kiribati, Vanuatu, Hong Kong, Samoa, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, American Samoa, Japan, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, New Caledonia, China, the United Kingdom, Vietnam, and Sri Lanka.

First Gold Medal for Fiji, Kosovo, and IOA Athlete

(GeoFact of the Day Blog — RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil) History is being made daily at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, BRAZIL. For the first time ever, athletes from two countries located thousands of miles apart — FIJI and KOSOVO — obtained their first Olympic medals, which happen to be GOLD! In addition, a gold medal goes to Fehaid Aldeehani — an Independent Olympic Athlete from KUWAIT. IOA athletes from the former Yugoslavia did win bronze (2) and silver (1) medals at Barcelona, Spain in 1992, but never before has an IOA athlete won gold like Aldeehani did! Aldeehani competed in the Double Trap Men's Shooting event, while Majlinda Kelmendi earned gold for Kosovo in her Judo for Women (52-kilogram weight) event.

After achieving gold medals for the first time ever, Fijian athletes are, of course, thankful the International Olympics Committee decided to include Rugby Sevens as an Olympic sport for the first time ever. Coached by Ben Ryan of the United Kingdom (Great Britain) and managed by Ropate Kauvesi, the team included the following members: Ro Dakuwaqa, Apisai Domolailai, Osea Kolinisau (captain), Semi Kunatani, Viliame Mata, Leone Nakarawa, Vatemo Ravouvou, Savenaca Rawaca, Kitione Taliga, Josua Tuisova, Jerry Tuwai, Jasa Veremalua, and Samisoni Viriviri. Rugby is known as Fiji's national sport, which makes total sense given Fiji's trailblazing victory on Thursday against the United Kingdom. Meanwhile, The PHILIPPINES earned their first medal since the Atlanta 1996 games. In Rio de Janeiro, Hidilyn Diaz earned silver for the Women's 53-kilogram Weightlifting competition.

Fiji Extinct and Endangered Species

As of July 27th, 2015, the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ for Fiji in Oceania lists 2 extinct species since the beginning of IUCN recordkeeping, 47 critically endangered species, and 53 endangered species. These numbers are quite extensive compared to data of similar-sized countries. However, Fiji is different in that there are more endemic species living in smaller areas, so they are naturally more at risk of endangerment and extinction. Fiji's two extinct species are the Hypotaenidia poeciloptera – the Bar-winged Rail bird – and Weinmannia spiraeoides plant. Both species were endemic to Fiji. Critically endangered species include the Fiji Crested Iguana, Fiji Petrel, Fijian Monkey-faced Bat, Hawksbill Turtle, and Red-throated Lorikeet bird. Endangered species include the Fiji Ground Frog, Fiji Snake, Golden Sandfish, Humphead Wrasse fish, and Ono-i-Lau Ground Skink lizard.

Fiji post - This post includes a map, and this link opens in a new tab or window.

Islands of Fiji

The South Pacific Ocean country of FIJI boasts a reputation for being a beautiful destination for tourism and vacationers, having many splendid islands. By far the largest island is Viti Levu, one of the westernmost islands in Fiji. The capital, Suva, is located on the southeast shore of this island. Found northeast of Viti Levu, Vanua Levu is the second largest island. The Yasawa Group of islands, including Matacawa Levu, Naviti, Viwa, Waya, and Yasawa, is north of the largest island and west of Vanua Levu. The Koro Sea is the center of Fiji, and the previously-mentioned islands and islands like Gau, Kadavu, Koro, Nairai, and Solo are situated to the west of the water body. Taveuni is north of the Koro Sea, while the Exploring Isles, Lau (Eastern) Group (with islands like Lakeba, Olorua, and Vanua Balavu), and Ringgold Isles are east of the Koro Sea. Learn more about Fiji!

Fiji

FIJI is an island country in the South Pacific Ocean. Fiji is west of Tonga, east of Vanuatu and New Caledonia, and south of Tuvalu. The capital is Suva, which has around 90,000 inhabitants and is located on the southern shore of Viti Levu, Fiji's largest island. The official languages are English, Bau Fijian, and Fiji Hindi (spoken by Fijians of Indian descent). Fiji's currency is the Fijian Dollar, and its ISO 4217 currency code is FJD. During the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Fiji's Rugby Sevens team participants earned the first medal — and their first gold medal — in their nation's history. Rugby is the national sport, and Fijian athletes have competed in the Summer Olympics since 1956. The map I created above was added to this post on 9/27/2013.

Learn more about Fiji's islands by clicking here (link to 7/30/13 post)!