In a feat that has left the world in awe, Torbjørn “Thor” Pedersen has returned home to Denmark after nearly ten years of travel, visiting every country in the world without taking a single plane.
Pedersen’s adventure began on October 10, 2013, when he left his life behind to undertake, with the help of the Red Cross, a journey that would take him to visit 203 countries, spending at least 24 hours in each of them.
Throughout his journey, Pedersen set strict rules for himself: live on a limited budget of about $20 a day, travel without a plane, and not return home until he completes his goal. His ultimate goal was to celebrate the goodness in people and show that a “stranger is a friend you haven’t met.”
“I have stayed with many, many strangers during my travels, and I have traversed every country in the world, the ones with armed conflicts, the ones with virus outbreaks, unscathed. I am either the luckiest man on the planet, or the The world is in a much better place than most people are led to believe by the terrifying and dramatic news on social media and news channels,” he says.
Pedersen traveled a total of 358,883 kilometers, the equivalent of nine orbits around the Earth, using a combination of 37 container ships, 158 trains, 351 buses, 219 taxis, 33 boats and 43 pedicabs, in 3,576 days.
Throughout his journey, he faced significant challenges, from obtaining visas in difficult countries to overcoming a severe bout of cerebral malaria in Ghana. Even the Covid-19 pandemic prevented him from returning home for two years, getting stuck in Hong Kong.
On May 24 of this year, Pedersen visited his last destination, the Maldives, marking the end of his epic odyssey. “When he was in the Maldives, the hustle and bustle was enormous and he had no time to reflect. He was mentally exhausted: it’s been a roller coaster of emotions,” explains Pedersen.
To return, he did not choose the plane as a mode of transport to return to Denmark, but rather he did it by boat, completing his journey with a historical and personal sense.
Upon his return, Pedersen was greeted with enthusiasm and great anticipation at the port of Aarhus by his family, friends and followers who had been following his journey through his blog and social media. Despite the challenges and obstacles along the way, Pedersen is grateful for the experiences he has had and the kindness of the people he has met on his journey.
“I haven’t processed that this project is finished yet. They say if you want to bring a new habit into your life, you have to repeat it for 30 days. I’ve been doing this for over 3,500 days. So this is very much who I am now,” Pedersen account.
Now that his incredible journey has come to an end, Pedersen plans to channel his speaking experiences and write a book about his adventure. He also hopes to spend more time with his wife and start a family together: “We have a lot to celebrate. While I was traveling, she accomplished a lot: she got a medical degree, finished her PhD, started working at a pharmaceutical company, got a promotion , completed two full triathlons… she’s a superwoman.”
His inspiring story highlights the human capacity to overcome obstacles and pursue dreams, proving that with determination and will, almost any goal is achievable.
