Pageantry to the Jungle; Belizean on C.B.S.’s Survivor
A Belizean contestant will be featured in the forty-second season of the long-running C.B.S. show “Survivor”. Romeo Escobar is well-known in the world of pageantry for his work with the Miss Universe Belize Organization. Well, he decided to put aside the glitz and glamour to rough it out in the unforgiving wilderness of Fiji, in the South Pacific. Against all odds, Escobar fulfilled his childhood dream of becoming a Survivor contestant. New Five’s Paul Lopez spoke with Escobar via zoom ahead of the show’s Thursday premier on C.B.S.
Paul Lopez, Reporting
From directing beauty pageant contestants on the world stage, to Survivor contestant, Romeo Escobar defied the odds by becoming a competitor in Survivor 42.
Romeo Escobar
Romeo Escobar, Survivor Contestant
“I have always been a huge fan of survivor. Ever since I was fourteen-years- old I always wanted to be on the show, but no one thought that I could do it. Because, everyone that knows me at home know I am the director of Miss Universe Belize and I am always so put together. I don’t look like I would be outside, not showering, not brushing my teeth, not eating. But, I am a fan of the show, so there is no way that I could say no.”
Escobar applied for the competition and much to his surprise he was chosen as one of the participants. Filmed in May of 2021, Season Forty-two of the show is said to have pushed the new group of contestants to their limits physically, mentally, and strategically, in pursuit of the million-dollar prize.
Romeo Escobar, Survivor Contestant
“Going into the show, I already knew as a fan what to expect. I already knew that I was going to be hungry. I already knew that there was going to be no shower. I already knew that I was going to sleep pan the floor. You know what I am saying. But, it is one thing seeing it pan the TV. It is another thing doing it and being out there in the island of Fiji and having to deal with the bugs, and no food and the now showering, and the sun and the rain, being rained on. So, it is one thing to say, I can do that, it is another thing being out there and having to survive all those hard things that happen to you during the show. I can tell you that none of us showered, none of us had anything to eat. We would eat a little bit of coconut or maybe if we caught a fish in the ocean. But, other than that we nuh eat nothing, nothing. I lost so much weight. It was hard. It was the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. One hundred percent real, it is easy to watch from home on your couch and say, oh that’s fake. That not real. But, it is real. I can tell it is one hundred percent real. Everything you see on the show.”
Survivor Season Forty-two is set to premier on Thursday, March ninth. And, while Escobar was barred from telling us how he did on the show, he did tell us about the biggest life lesson he received as a contender.
Romeo Escobar, Survivor Contestant
“As everyone knows I work with young women, building up young women in Belize through the Miss Universe Belize Organization as Director. One of the things I always tell the young ladies, if you put your mind to something you can do it. SO, I had to tell myself that when I was out there. When I was hungry, tired, cold, I kept telling myself, you can do this, you can do this. That is the biggest lesson, is that as long as you believe in yourself you can achieve anything.”
Reporting for News Five, I am Paul Lopez.
