A Journey Without Wings: Visiting 194 Countries With Feet Firmly on the Ground

When was the last time you met someone who has explored hundreds of countries without ever boarding a plane? Meet Thor, currently residing in Hong Kong (though who knows what tomorrow holds for him?).

"I am going to be the first person to visit every country in the world without flying," he proudly declares.

You could say he's the first person who doesn't really have a permanent home. I mean, yes, he was born in Denmark and lived there most of his life, but, "Every day I'm somewhere new, and who knows where I'll be tomorrow," he laughs, sharing about the travel bug that bit him exactly seven years, two months, and 27 days ago. That was the moment he realized no one in history had ever reached this kind of milestone—to visit every country in a single journey without flying.

"So I thought to myself, 'Why can't I be the first?'" he says with a smile.

And so, on October 10th, at precisely 10:10, he embarked on his mission—with just one pair of shoes. "I promised myself I wouldn't return home until I finished the journey and broke the record," he declares.

How many buses has he already taken? Don’t worry; he won’t forget the number—336—because every detail of his journey is meticulously documented. That's 336 buses, 158 trains, 25 cargo ships, 8 trucks, and once he even traveled by horse-drawn carriage.

And how much does he spend each day? You might find it hard to believe, but through all his travels, Thor has not spent more than $20 a day.