Not many people who come out of their teens can sustain a life of travelling. And, most people certainly don’t wish to undertake the extensive travelling like what 44-year-old Mike Spencer Bown has done for the past 23 years. Having left home on a worldwide tour at 21, Bown is now getting ready to head back home in Calgary after covering each and every country spread across the globe on a 23-year voyage. What he has earned for his rare feat is the coveted title – the “most traveled man in the world.”

Cultural Understanding

It was in 1990 that Bown thought of going around the world, visiting as many countries as possible, and if possible, land his feet on every country found on an international map. Along with that, he also developed a liking for understanding the kind of culture practiced in every country. Almost 23 years later, Bown has now successfully accomplished his “go around the world” mission, and in the process, has also come to know about the vastly different cultures all over the world. By spending a reasonably sufficient amount of time in each country, the most traveled man has made use of his worldwide endeavor to learn so much about different races people belong to in various parts of the world.

Bown’s intention to learn about different race and culture is what has made him different from many others who have also undertaken similar tours to cover the length and breadth of the world. According to Bown, what he has compromised to realize his life-time dream is a normal family life, which has eluded him for more than two decades. From Afghanistan to Iraq, Bown has even visited countries that have witnessed large-scale violence for quite some time, and more importantly, proved a high-risk option for outsiders. But, much to his amusement, Bown found people in such nations to be quite generous, making it clear that these war-afflicted countries had an altogether different image to present to a visitor.

That Bown had to sell his profit-making export business in Indonesia to fund his marathon travel is one thing that has attracted immense attention from all over the world. Commenting on the issue, he says those who have already been to a record number of countries – numbering anywhere from 100 to 170 – have either made a stop at different international airports or flown between major cities. According to him, such people can only be classified as passengers, and not travelers. It was only when Bown visited Mogadishu, Somalia, a couple of years ago that he made headlines by becoming the country’s maiden recreational visitor in more than two decades. The Somalia visit, in particular, assumes significance in the backdrop of Bown managing to make it after being denied entry several times.

Treasured Moments

A visit to a blue whale graveyard in Antarctica, learning to drive a reindeer sleigh in Russia, living in the company of a Bambuti pygmy tribe in Congo, and being in close affinity with gorillas in Rwanda are among the fondest memories Bown wishes to recall from his epic world tour. And very rightly, the man who completed such a challenging, if not impossible, task commemorated his final trip in Ireland with a Guinness beer.