Becoming the First Filipino to Travel the World at Age 77
How a 77 calendar year old turned the to start with Filipino to travel the entire world?
At the age of 77, Odette Aquitania Ricasa became the to start with Filipino to be able to journey to all 195 countries in the world, 193 of which are acknowledged by the United Nations, even though the other 2 are non-users: the Holy sea and the Condition of Palestine.
In advance of the pandemic started out in 2020, she was only five international locations brief of acquiring her purpose. These nations around the world are Sudan, Chad, the Central African Republic, Libya, and Iraq.
Last but not least, on the 25th of August 2022, right after getting held for two years simply because of the pandemic, Ms. Ricasa accomplished the target of several travelers – to travel to every state in the planet! She arrived in Kurdistan, Iraq, on Thursday, creating it the last region on her checklist.
In general, she has been to 301 nations around the world and territories, like islands! Even all those islands that are not acknowledged by numerous, which include Robinson Crusoe islands, Lakshadweep islands, Andaman Nicobar islands, and extra!
How It All Started off
Ms. Ricasa is based in Los Angeles, California and she commenced the journey of touring the earth in the yr 1980. She shared that some nations, such as Russia, experienced incredibly rigid rules concerning tourism through individuals occasions. However, that did not quit her from discovering extra and additional international locations.
Unforgettable Journey Encounters
Ms. Ricasa has two passports – the Philippines and the US. She generally uses her US Passport, but she pointed out that in some scenarios, working with her Philippines passport is suitable.
A single of these instances is heading to Africa. Each US and Philippines passport holders want a visa in purchase to travel to this continent, but employing her US passport calls for much more paperwork than applying her Philippine passport.
When questioned what were some of her unforgettable encounters in her much more than 40 a long time of traveling, she mentioned there have been a lot, but her stop by to Sierra Leone and the Democratic Republic of Congo, equally African nations, are unforgettable. The explained nations around the world are not common locations for vacationers, and for the duration of her pay a visit to, she was alone. But as the declaring goes, ‘You need to do the matter which you consider you cannot do.’ And she did she conquered Africa and the rest of the environment!
She also pointed out that when they arrived in Libya just this calendar year, they felt like they have been VIPs as there was a whole lot of security escorting them. But this kind of one of a kind experience is what motivates her to journey extra.
In her 4 a long time of touring, 80% of those people is her traveling on your own, whilst the rest 20% is a group tour (which she joined when she was just a rookie in the vacation earth)—talking about bravery, enthusiasm, and enthusiasm!
Additional Achievements
Ms. Ricasa is certainly journey pro as she is also a member of the Travelers’ Century Club, A club that only enables people folks who have been to 100 or a lot more countries!
What’s more, she’s also an lively member of the Philippine World Explorers vacation group, and she heads the US West Coast chapter, doing this although traveling.
Apart from becoming a traveler and the first Filipino to travel the environment, she is also an creator of 6 publications, an artist, a motivational speaker, and a pianist.
She outlined that possessing her ebook was really not her concept. It was early 2000, and she was in Spain writing her vacation encounters in her journal – “With all the nations and towns I’ve been to, it is not possible for me to bear in mind them, that is why I create them in my journal.”, non-verbatim statement of Ms. Ricasa.
Her good friend, who was with her at that time, told her, “Why don’t you write a guide instead?” That statement gave her the notion to create a travel reserve and share her activities on the road. Her publications are all obtainable on Amazon.
Ms. Odette Aquitania Ricasa’s vacation working experience is one of the inspiration of quite a few vacationers, not only Filipinos, but foreigners as well.
