Counting Countries

Pav Mbeda has traveled to 106 countries Hey now, I am your host, Ric Gazarian. We are back with the second episode of 2025. I hope your travels are off to a good start. Today, I am happy to share this conversation with Pav Mbeda. Pav was one of the 250 participants of the sold out Extraordinary Travel Festival. I reach out to all ticket buyers and was happy to note that Pav was from Kenya. Whether...

Yooshita has traveled to 108 countries Hey now, I am your host, Ric Gazarian. A giant Happy New Year to all of you country counters! We are back today with a new episode after a small break. Over the past year, you've likely heard me mention many times the Extraordinary Travel Festival on this podcast. In November, I had the privilege of organizing this incredible sold-out event in Bangkok, hostin...

Hey now, I am your host, Ric Gazarian. Well not really. Today I am sharing an interview of me hosted by Matt Bowles who hosts the Maverick Show Podcast. Matt and I had great conversation and wanted to share it with my listeners. So, please check out this conversation and also make sure you subscribe to the Maverick Show Podcast. He has over 300 episodes to binge. A ton of interesting people. Inclu...

Hey now! This is it, the last episode before the Extraordinary Travel Festival in Bangkok. Still a little time left to join. Use code BANGKOK. My special guest is speaker and sponsor Charles Veley, founder of the Most Traveled People, and considered one of the most traveled people in the world. Charles teases some of the updates he will be sharing in Bangkok, from updates on the App to next locati...

Phillips has traveled to every country in the world Hey now, I am your host, Ric Gazarian. Today, we are speaking with Phillips Connor. I had the pleasure of meeting PC in Singapore with a group of extreme travelers and I am very pleased that he will be attending the ETF in Bangkok. Phillips is extremely well traveled, nearing 1000 regions on the NomadMania list. Phillips shares it all on this epi...

Hey now, I am your host Ric Gazarian on the 10th update for the Extraordinary Travel Festival. We have a lot of news to share with you today. So grab that coffee of if in Thailand, grab a chamanow and please listen in. The event is now about a month and a half a way. But still time to join, use code BANGKOK to save at www.extraordinarytravelfest.com. Some quick updates ... we have added three new...

Andy Hicks Counting Countries has traveled to 120 countries Hey now, I am your host, Ric Gazarian. Today, we are speaking with Andy Hicks. I have had the pleasure of meeting Andy at the first ETF in Armenia and the TCC meeting in May in the Azores. Andy was raised in a non-travel environment, but a couple of pivotal trips propelled him into the 193 community and with his stated goal of every count...

I am excited to introduce to you two partners of the Extraordinary Travel Festival, Matt Bowles and Ian Cumming. Matt is a 10 year plus digital nomad, who hosts the very successful The Maverick Show With Matt Bowles as well as a real estate investment company. Matt can be found around the globe setting up shop in cities as diverse as Nairobi, Lagos or Luanda. I am pleased to announce that Matt wil...

Luisa Yu has traveled to every country in the world Hey now, I am your host, Ric Gazarian. I am excited to have Luisa Yu on the podcast. She is well known and beloved member to many in the community. For those not in the know, Luisa just visited her last country this year. She accomplished this goal as a 79 year old. When many in her age group have retired to more placid and serene pastures, Luisa...

Join us in Bangkok for the Extraordinary Travel Festival in November of 2024. Please use code – BANGKOK – to save $100 (the discount will be reduced starting September 1). Reserve your place today. On this episode, I speak to 3 amazing people who you will also meet at the Extraordinary Travel Festival in Bangkok on November 15-17. First up is Fadi Assi. Many people in the extreme travel community...

Jason Wang has traveled to 175 countries Hey now, I am your host, Ric Gazarian. I am happy to introduce to you Jason Wang, an avid traveler, foodie, and photographer. Not only is he Chasing 193, but he also chasing the 7 Summits. Jason's life tracks all of the great successes embodied by the best of American immigration. A life which was originally defined by school and work was dramatically redef...

Join us in Bangkok for the Extraordinary Travel Festival in November of 2024. Please use code – BANGKOK – to save $100. Reserve your place today. I believe there are 3 main pillars of why you might want to consider attending the ETF, this November in Bangkok. First is the destination. Maybe BKK might seem too common. Well as a resident I would posit that this city offers so much beyond the Grand P...

Hey now, I am your host, Ric Gazarian. You might know Joel from his flowing beard on social media. Joel is someone I have known of for years but virtually. And in fact, we ran into each other randomly on our travels in Central Africa. I speak with Joel and learn about his fascinating journey in life as well as Chasing 193. Joel was very candid during this conversation about subjects that some peop...

Join us in Bangkok for the Extraordinary Travel Festival in November of 2024. Please use code – BANGKOK – to save $100. Reserve your place today. I believe there are 3 main pillars of why you might want to consider attending the ETF, this November in Bangkok. First is the destination. Maybe BKK might seem too common. Well as a resident I would posit that this city offers so much beyond the Grand P...

Nabil Kazi has traveled to 129 countries Hey now, I am your host, Ric Gazarian. I am excited to share my conversation with Nabil Kazi. I connected with Nabil Kazi back in 2021 when he suggested a guest (Nick Butter - episode 95) for Counting Countries. I guess everything comes full circle as Nabil is a guest on this episode. Nabil and I have been in contact ever since and even connected in person...

Join us in Bangkok for the Extraordinary Travel Festival in November of 2024. Please use code – BANGKOK – to save $120. Reserve your place today. The discount will be reduced starting in May, lock in your savings and buy now. Want to go to Bhutan? Join us on our side trip to Bhutan. Or you can join us on a tour to UNESCO Thailand. I was fortunate to secure Richard Barrow as a speaker for the Extra...

Tan Wee Cheng has traveled to 187 countries Hey now, I am your host, Ric Gazarian. Wee Cheng, a regional neighbor, and I have communicated on and off for several years, but like many of us in the community we were only virtual acquaintances. That changed when I met Wee Cheng in person at an extreme travel dinner in Singapore last year and then a more recent catchup in Honolulu. I was surprised to...

Elena Chechina has traveled to 158 countries Hey now, I am your host, Ric Gazarian. I met Elena back at the ETF in Yerevan and started to realize what a unique life she was leading. She is a true global citizen with true family connections to Europe, Asia, and Africa. Elena has somehow managed to balance the multiple moving parts of her life … 3 children, a spouse who lives and works in Northern A...

Hayley has traveled to every country in the world Hey now, I am your host, Ric Gazarian. I started to follow Hayley in the last year or two on Instagram. And over the last several months we started sharing some messages. She has just completed her journey to every country in the world and I wanted to learn about her adventures as well as her two physical disabilities and how she overcame these cha...

To hear the entire podcast join us on patreon.com or Apple Podcast subscription. Join us in Bangkok for the Extraordinary Travel Festival in November of 2024. Please use code – BANGKOK – to save $120. Reserve your place today. Want to go to Bhutan? Join us on our side trip to Bhutan. Or you can join us on a tour to UNESCO Thailand. For those in the know when it comes to Thailand, you must know the...

This is the second publication of this interview. The first podcast had a corrupted file. All audio from the first interview had been deleted after 1 hr and 31 minutes. This publication is the full file. Raiiq has traveled to 118 countries Hey now and Happy New Year to all! I am your host, Ric Gazarian. I knew Raiiq from EPS and had the pleasure of meeting him at the ETF in Armenia. I was spurred...

Join us in Bangkok for the Extraordinary Travel Festival in November of 2024. Please use code – BANGKOK – to save $120. Reserve your place today. Want to go to Bhutan? Join us on our side trip to Bhutan. Or you can join us on a tour to UNESCO Thailand. I am happy to introduce a new speaker at the ETF, David Van Driessche. I consider David a Papua New Guinea product expert. He has spent a cumulativ...

Thor Pedersen has traveled to every country in the world Hey now, I am your host, Ric Gazarian. Checking in with multi-repeat guest and travel legend, Thor Pedersen of Once Upon A Saga. For those of us in the know, Thor recently finished a nearly 10 year journey to every country in the world without flying in an unbroken journey with a minimum of 24 hours in each country. These additional rules th...

Join us in Bangkok for the Extraordinary Travel Festival in November of 2024. Please use code - BANGKOK - to save $120. Reserve your place today. Want to go to Bhutan? Join us on our side trip to Bhutan. I am pleased to announce a new speaker, Lakshmi Parthasarathy who will be speaking about her experience on a multi-week homestay in Mogadishu. The next guest is Palle Bo, The Radio Vagabond. Palle...

Michael Noel has traveled to 192 countries Please fill out this survey and provide feedback - https://forms.gle/1RmLQh7hLuw2Xnc6A Hey now, I am your host, Ric Gazarian. Checking in with our new guest, Michael Noel and I crossed paths in the Douala airport en route to Bangui. We ended up sharing a dinner and a trip to a waterfall. Always great to run into fellow travelers in the least traveled plac...