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The last two weeks have been rather manic. I have amazingly enough received literally hundreds of calls, emails, and messages from media on every continent, except Antarctica. Most of them want to hear about my book, usually with some travel tips thrown in. My extensive travelling has naturally generated some experience, and I have here tried to collect various updated travel tips. The basics Over 30 travel tips that will take you through many different aspects of travel. How to find cheap flights The title pretty much says it all. Travel hacks to visit many countries efficiently You will find ways to increase your country collection fast, but please, please, please do take the time to explore the countries you visit too. Collecting countries is not like collecting postage stamps or coins – you should take your time to enjoy and explore the countries too. Please let me know if you have other tips you would like to share, if you have exciting, horrible or fascinating experiences to tell or if you have any questions. And don’t forget the #CountryChallenge – how many countries can you – or a friend – visit? Some of you might want to figure out how to visit Antarctica too.

I don’t envy Cristiano Ronaldo, I don’t envy Bill Gates, I don’t envy Barrack Obama I only do envy Gunnar Garfors. @garfors Cenk, August 11, 2015. Well, at least I think this is the best Tweet of all times. No wonder, really, if you know who Barrack Obama, Bill Gates and Cristiano Ronaldo are. Then again, who would envy their high-profiled, assumingly semi-stressful (although decently paid) positions when you can rather travel the world and soak up experiences, tastes, feelings and atmospheres? I had to find out who was behind this Tweet. “As a Turkish citizen I have to spend a lot of time and money on legal procedures related to obtaining visas and this annoys me a lot!” he explained to me. Sounds familiar, hey? “I read about you in an article and I said “Oh, my god! This guy already did what I would ask from the genie in a bottle,” Cenk said. Visiting many different cultures and countries certainly comes recommended. The story about my travels and the book about them has already attracted international interest in dozens of countries. You might want to follow Cenk on Twitter. I already do (link taken down on Cenk’s request).

The Norwegian government has authorized the disposal of 300 million tons of mining waste in the pristine and virtually untouched Førde Fjord. It is among the fjords that twice have been voted the best preserved attraction on UNESCO’s World Heritage List by National Geographic. The Førde Fjord is also one of the best breeding grounds for fish on the West Coast and two of the country’s finest salmon rivers flow into the fjord. Please help us stop this madness, through your support to a marketing campaign for political parties opposing the plans. The election is September 14. We humbly ask for your help to run an effective marketing campaign to inform voters of the monumental consequences, and to help secure a majority against the fjord disposal. Funds will be used for ads in papers, posters and direct marketing. Please contribute. Naturvernforbundet, an environmental organization, has labelled the plans “one of the worst pollution scandals in modern Norwegian history”. (Les på norsk – Norwegian version.) The local 21 person strong district council can overturn the government’s controversial decision, given that the five parties against the fjord disposal obtain at least 11 seats following the election on September 14. The county council (one of 19 in Norway) is elected on the same day and have a say too. So do the other three districts alongside the fjord. A new district council can reverse that decision. Other districts and the county can also engage pressure. The 300 millions tons of waste include 112 kilos of mercury annually. That is almost ten times as much as the 12-15 kilos of mercury which are being emitted in all of Norway per year (divided on 100,000 kilometeres of coastline). The rest of the waste is made up by heavy metals, nano-particles and fine grained dust – all of which negatively affect and kill marine life. And it is beyond belief that the project has been given the green light by so-called environmental minister Tine Sundtoft. On the date of her ministry’s acceptance, Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg was campaigning for Norwegian salmon in Vietnam, giving away free samples of healthy fish from the clean fjords of Norway. All featured on the 7 o’clock national news on Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation. Can you imagine that beautiful Norway is one of only five countries in the world that actually allow sea disposals? (The others are Papa New Guinea, Turkey, Chile and Indonesia.) Neither can foreigners that hear about these plans. We are met by shock and despair by people who love nature. And only 7% of Norwegians support the practice of sea disposals. Someone needs to take responsibility when the government doesn’t. We hope that you will help us Save Our Pristine Fjord through local democracy – the crown funding campaign is live on SaveOurFjord.org. Any gift is most welcome and highly appreciated. This madness has been covered internationally by The Guardian, The Telegraph, The BBC and a range of others. Thank you for taking the time to read up on this.

That I have travelled to every country in the world and written a book about it, was recently featured by Business Insider, Daily Mail, The LAD bible and a range of other media around the world. The first of those articles racked up 8 million hits alone; people are clearly interested, intrigued or disgusted. It is time for a little country run – join the #CountryChallenge! The feedback has gone through the roof, most of it is positive, and it turns out that there are thousands of people that are collecting countries on one scale or another, although at many different paces, with different goals and using a range of strategies. I have properly visited every country, although relatively fast using just under 10 years. I still decided to throw in some crazy fast trips after finishing, including popping by 19 countries in 24 hours. It turns out that almost every avid traveller know how many countries they have been to – out of all the countries in the world (why 198 countries?). There are the “pros” that are very determined to travel “everywhere” and that actually have all 198 countries within reach. I proudly introduce Johnny Ward, Jonny Blair, Meg Jerrard, Melissa Roy, Torbjørn C. Pedersen, Jørn Bjørn Augestad, Stefan Roesch and Jessica Elliott. Not to forget, of course, my Norwegian friends and countrymen Tay-young Pak and Hans Petter Stølsvik. And I have forgotten many other ace candidates. I do apologize! Please get in touch, and I will list you here. I do nevertheless hereby challenge you all to take part – and to invite travellers that you know to do the same! Game is on. #CountryChallenge #Visit198 And this is of course not only about me challenging some well-travelled people. Please feel free to join me in challenging or inviting yourself, friends, family-members, co-workers or that obnoxious neighbours of yours that you’d be happy to see a little bit less of.Travel generates a mutual understanding like no other method known to mankind. In between individuals, cultures, nations, religions and faiths. I truly believe that this world will be a better place if more people travel, interact with each other and are open to thoughts different to your own. That can only lead to more respect, more friendship and more mutual smiles.Scared of terror? You mean you have been put off travelling by the countless terrorist attacks in way too many countries? Well, please do not be. Why terrorism should not stop you from travelling. Some people travel a lot, but will not have the time, desire or possibility to visit EVERY country. You can still manage over 75%. Just don’t leave out an entire inhabited continent (and you will have to visit Africa to manage this, the continent is home to 55 countries). #CountryChallenge #Visit150 There are a lot of people that are approaching a hundred countries. I dare you to reach 100! And to throw a big party when you have managed – you will then also just about have passed the half-way mark. Carina Nilles and Caroline Lupini, are you in? #CountryChallenge #Visit100 And, needless to say, many more have been to 21, 33 or 48 countries. Come on, you can do 50! #CountryChallenge #Visit50 Are you one of those who have visited a single digit number of countries, 10 is within reach, consider yourself invited as well. #CountryChallenge #Visit10 There are also many people that have never travelled. Perhaps out of choice, lack of funds or lack of initiative or interest. Have you or someone you know been to only one or two countries – go for lucky three. Challenged you are! #CountryChallenge #Visit3 You are regardless of your travelling ambitions hereby invited. And I’d love to hear about your challenges and the stories they will inevitably result in. To not to travel is to insult your own intellect.And no, this is not about quantity over quality. This is about expanding your horizions, understanding the world, seeing and feeling cultural differences and escaping from the bubble that you have grown up within. This might help you realize that you do not live in the center of the universe and that people in other parts of the world don’t even know anything about your home country, and that they also consider themselves the center of the universe. And why shouldn’t they? Travelling is, in my opinion, the best way to learn about the world and yourself. Hence this challenge. So #Visit3, #Visit10, #Visit50, #Visit100 or #Visit198 but please, just leave your comfort zone. You might also get the notion that you are extremely lucky to be able to travel abroad at all. A lot of people do not have enough to even provide for themselves or their family, let alone to set aside to foreign travels. Adrian Porras from Costa Rica recently wrote about his dream to travel in a guest post on garfors.com.

I have been to all 198 countries in less than 10 years, while maintaining a full-time job throughout – and managing to write a book about the mad and often outrageous experiences. In Norway that means 5 weeks of holiday annually plus around 2 weeks worth of national holidays. So, how in the world is it possible to visit every country in such a relatively short amount of time? Here are some tips on how to travel extensively while maintaining studies or a full-time job. 1. You can travel quite far on a weekend. And there are 52 weekends a year. I have, at the busiest of times travelled over 30 weekends in a year. Even I enjoy the odd weekend at home. 2. Take time off work instead of accepting overtime pay. Then take out those hours before or after a weekend or a holiday trip to extend your available travelling time. 3. Heading back Sunday night is great, especially if you can sleep on the plane (if not, consider taking a sleeping pill). You will then land back home early in the morning, and you can pop by your house for a shower (unless there are such facilities in the office) and go straight to work. I have had trips where I have visited Seoul, New York and Sydney for less than 24 hours before returning to Norway. Of course the journey to and from Australia took much longer than the stay itself, but it was exhilarating to do such a crazy trip just for a weekend. I have naturally been there before and after to explore the country properly. 4. Travel with hand-luggage only. It is lighter and saves you valuable time in both ends, which is a bonus when you don’t have much time to start with. It is more environmentally friendly to travel light and you can use a lack of multiple outfits to do some shopping in another country with a different selection of clothes on offer. You will furthermore be more relaxed, and you will look more like a local than a tourist with a big suitcase. There is also less to worry about, more flexible and cheaper (on airlines that charge extra to check-in luggage). 5. Use a seat as a bed. Whether it is a plane, a bus, a boat or a train, you might as well go from A to B while you are sleeping. You will save on accommodation costs and wake up in a new place. 6. If you travel for work, ask to book the tickets to your destination the weekend before, then return on the Sunday the weekend after. You can then buy extra tickets on your own and explore one new country before the work event and another country the weekend after. 7. Set aside weekends or long weekends long time in advance and trawl the Internet for cheap tickets. 8. Take “an extra holiday” during your holiday. Chances are that you will have to transfer anyway. Instead of waiting for hours in the airport, book an extra day or two there, and get to see one extra country. You might even like this second choice destination better than your original destination. 9. Do this both ways, and you add yet another country (of course just staying in an airport doesn’t really do justice to any country – and I wouldn’t count that as a visit). 10. Fly via a country instead of buying a direct flight. Then stay for some extra time, or explore for a few hours. Non-direct tickets are usually cheaper anyway. 11. This might come as a surprise to you, but the world is round. Travel around it instead of going back and forth. If you have to go to another continent for work or holiday, you might as well continue around the world to see some new places. You might need to take some extra days off work, but you will get to see countries and places very far away without using too much extra holiday time. Most of the travel time will anyhow be work. There are a lot of low cost airlines in many countries, so you can travel around the world by booking a lot of relatively cheap one-way flights. The three big alliances also offer round the world tickets – flexible ones even. 12. Visit 19 countries in 24 hours. We did and set a world record. Admittedly not much time in each country, though… 13. Visit five continents in one day. The same problems as above, really, although we travelled the same route back and spent much more time in each country. It was later admitted as a Guinness World Record. 14. Take your holiday immediately before or after a work trip. Your employer will likely let you book the flight there or back a week or two earlier or later as long as it doesn’t cost anything extra. 15. Travel by bus, train or boat instead of a plane – if you can. That will often take you through more countries. Just be sure to stop in each of them and explore. Driving through a country doesn’t really count… 16. Check out the map in advance. There may be a country (or several) nearby that you can visit on a day-trip. 17. Most people should take several holidays per year, rather than just one as they will then have earned more money that they can use to travel to new countries. Unless, of course you have saved up money. You will then benefit from rather taking one long holiday as you can get away with only one return flight ticket and rather travel with trains, buses and other modes of transport, locally – and get to see a number of countries on one trip. 18. To get a European rail pass (Interrail) is another way to visit a lot of countries in a short period of time, without spending a lot of money. 19. Don’t be a sheep. Dare be different. Travel to unusual places and avoid queues, crowded flights, expensive tickets, fully booked hotels and having to meet your obnoxious neighbour in the restaurant. 20. Sign up for frequent flier programs, and get flight tickets and hotel stays for free. Using credit cards and staying in hotels sometimes also make you earn points. You may not bother to sign up to too many such programs, but do it at least for an airline within the alliance that you travel the most with. Star Alliance, One World and Skyteam are the three big ones. 21. Keep two passports. Many countries allow for this, as long as you can prove that you have a need for it due to extensive travel. This enables you to travel on one passport, while applying for visas to new countries with the other one. Or to apply for visas to two countries at the same time, before travelling there. 22. Apply for visas in neighbouring countries to where you want to go. This is almost always faster and cheaper. Whereas applying at an embassy in Europe or Northern America can take weeks or even months, it rarely takes longer than 1-24 hours if you visit the embassy in a neighbouring country. And, as a bonus, costs tend to be lower. 23. Always carry a lot of passport photos of yourself for visas. This will save you time and money when visa shopping. Instead of having photos taken in photo boxes in train stations, take a selfie with a white background using your phone. Then use Photoshop or a similar image programme and copy the photograph of yourself as many times that you can fit onto an i.e. A4 sized area (depends on the size required). Then save it as a file and print it out on photo paper on your own printer, or have it done in a photo shop. Finally use scissors or a knife to cut them out and voilà, you have around 30 photographs on a piece of paper, costing much less than 4 normal passport photos from a photo box.

Den norske regjeringa har sagt ja til at 300 millionar tonn med gruveavfall kan dumpast rett i Førdefjorden, tilsett diverse kjemikaliar. Vi snakkar om ein nasjonal laksefjord som går langs bygder, byar og fantastiske naturområde. Hjelp oss å støtte marknadsføring til fordel for politiske parti som kan stoppe dette om dei vert valde inn på kommunestyret i haust. Målet med denne kronerullinga er å gjennom lokal marknadsføring mobilisere folk til å delta i lokalvalet og stemme på eit parti som er imot fjorddeponi. Støtt prosjektet på reddfjorden.org. Regjeringa sitt vedtak kan medføre store konsekvensar for sjø- og turistnæringane. Det er likevel kommunestyret som har suveren reguleringsmyndigheit i slike saker. Ved å få folk rundt Førdefjorden til å nytte røysteretten og stemme på eit parti som er imot deponi kan vi ta fjorden tilbake på demokratisk vis. Det stadfesta også Bergens Tidende på leiarplass 3. august: Endringar i korleis kommunestyra er sett saman opnar for å bruke reguleringsplanane til å stanse deponiet. Men det krev eit nei-fleirtal på kommunestyret, det vil seie minst 11 av 21 representantar. Spesielt alvorleg er det at Nordic Mining sine gruveplanar vart presenterte i 2008, medan det var kommunestyret som vart vald inn i Naustdal 2007, året før, som sa ja til deponi i Førdefjorden. Fleirtalet (Ap, H og Sp) handla altså utan mandat frå veljarane. Dei fortener ikkje ny tillit. La oss ta fjorden attende. Røyst på eit parti som er imot fjorddeponi. Og hjelp oss å få fram bodskapen til andre veljarar i Naustdal og dei tre andre kommunane rundt Førdefjorden. Vi vonar du rullar nokre kroner vår veg for å hjelpe å stoppe dette. Du kan hjelpe på reddfjorden.org. P.S. Galskapen har blitt omtala av The Guardian, The Telegraph, BBC og mange andre.

This country might be more known for hunger, floods, corruption and poverty than tourism. But go, and you will be rewarded by beautiful beaches, safaris, natural attractions and friendly locals. And I guarantee you won’t meet your neighbour. Written by Øystein Garfors. People travel to Malawi for a variety of reasons, but few tourist are flocking to experience the country’s attractions. This might change. And it should. Lonely Planet added it to its top 10 recommendations for 2014 while Huffington Post proclaimed it the winner of its “top emerging travel hotspots for 2015”. I have lived there for 14 months and made 10 visits. That made me fall in love with the beautiful country and its beautiful people. Help a non-profit organization get solar powered lights to poor families in Malawi. Malawi has had for several years had the dubious honour of topping The World Bank’s “countries with lowest GDP per capita” list – or the world’s poorest countries. Norway, my country, is on top of the list of the richest countries with a GDP per capita that is 384 times higher than Malawi. There the GDP per capita is as low as 253 US dollars. But thanks to the countless smiles that meet you, the poverty doesn’t show. And every time I return home from a visit, I am ashamed of us Norwegians. Why? I dare to say that we are introvert, self-centred and shy. At our best we might share a modest nod to strangers. Not so in the little African country, the size of Pennsylvania. Malawians greet all visitors with a beaming smile and with genuine, disarming warmth. They will go out of their way to be friendly and helpful to anyone who honours them by visiting their country. And one little trick will make them smile even broader, if that is even possible; learn a few greeting phrases in Chichewa, their language. Say “muli bwanji?” (how are you?) and “dili bwino kaya inu” (I’m fine, and you?), and you will be adopted as a lifelong friend on the spot. But there is more. I will give you another five good reasons, why Malawi better come high on your next gotta-go-to list. 1. Lilongwe Malawi is a landlocked country, making it a bit difficult to reach. If you fly in, you will arrive in the capital, Lilongwe. The dirty unorganized city comes with few facilities for the keen shopper, the hungry gourmet traveller or the sophisticated night owl. During daytime the roads are packed with 4WD NGO owned Toyota Prados and hawkers trying to make ends meet. In my opinion Lilongwe is actually best avoided. Except for getting that genuine feel of a real and chaotic African city. And most travellers will have to spend at least a night or two upon arrival or departure, so make the best of it. The main market in the old town is huge and interesting place to get lost during the day. Just watch your belongings. And if you are into dodgy nightlife, Lilongwe is your new hotspot for years to come. There are fun discos and nightclubs where you can exhaust yourselves until next morning. Just don’t judge them by the volume. The worst ones usually play the loudest music. If you stay centrally in the Old town, you are safe to walk as long as it is light. I’d recommend to go by taxi after dark, and especially when looking for nightlife. And despite of Lilongwe’s drawbacks, this is actually where you will find the best restaurants in the country. 2. Senga Bay Senga Bay Beach is a weekend retreat for NGO (non-government organization) workers and the wealthy Malawians, primarily based in Lilongwe. A broad stretch of sandy beach is home to a range of hotels, everything from luxurious resorts to small lodges and campsites. The availability of facilities, mixed with village life and fishermen at work make this a place with a great atmosphere. If you get bored it is only 16 kilometres to the town of Salima where you can visit the markets or have a game of pool or a drink with the locals in one of the many bars. Remember that 9 out of 10 girls you will meet in pubs all over Malawi will be there for work, and that few of them are with good health. Be warned. Senga Bay’s proximity to the airport makes it my favourites end stop on my way home. If you end up at Cool Runnings, a brilliant but simple lodge, please keep it a secret. 3. Lake Ilala ferry service This motor ship has plied Lake Malawi since 1951. Go as a passenger, I promise that it will be a remarkable experience. Starting Fridays from Monkey Bay in the south it continues up the coast to Nkhata Bay, Likoma and onwards to several other interesting stops. You will even get to visit the Mozambiqian side of the lake. It always gets lively during stopovers where sometimes hundreds of people will show up to witness and take part in the hustle. The ship is often late and has even broken down on several occasions, but remember TIA – This Is Africa – such experiences just add to the enjoyment of the ride. Expect to travel together with chickens, fish, goats, locals and maybe a few tourists. Ilala is 172 feet (52 meters) long and can accommodate up to 365 passengers. In first class, on the top floor, you will naturally be more comfortable, but see fewer smiling people. The majority of the passengers find themselves cramped together under deck. If you are white, chances are close to 100% that you will be the only one onboard. Book ahead to secure a bed in one of the 7 cabins. You should otherwise bring warm clothing for the night and sun block for the day. 4. Lake of Stars music festival The biggest art event of the year takes place every year in September and October in beautiful surroundings somewhere around Lake Malawi. In 2015 the 10th edition will take place in Mangochi. Look forward to three days of great music, art and performances by local and international artists. October is the warmest month of the year, so if air conditioning is your cup of tea, make sure to book a room ahead. Earlier this year, Time Out magazine named Lake of Stars as having the most beautiful festival location in the world. Just sayin’. 5. Nkhotakota Welcome to what is allegedly Africas biggest village south of Sahara! Nkhotakota (Chichewa for “Corner Corner”) is both a town and one of the districts in the Central Region of Malawi. It is on the shore of Lake Malawi and one of the ports of call for M/S Ilala. Nkhotakota is a great place to get a feel of real Malawian everyday life. The population of the town feels like 5,000 but is actually estimated to be closer to 50,000. The town is my Malawian hometown, and where I travel for business. It has several uncrowded jewels that are waiting to be explored by you. Just to stay, observe and take part in daily life at the market, the beach or a local pub will make your day. I promise. You will experience great vibes and most people are up for a chat. 6. Safari You may not associate Malawi with safaris, but this is actually often the main reason why people travel here. The country has never had the reputation of being a prime safari destination like Tanzania or Zambia, but this is about to change. Let me just mention brand new wildlife lodges, initiatives to stop pouching and governmental plans to improve the parks In Liwonde National park you can for instance get a 2 hour boat safari for less than 20 USD. Last time I saw plenty of large animals like hippos, crocodiles, antelopes and elephants. There are also all sorts of animals at Nkhotakota game reserve, but they are harder to spot as the the vegetation makes for some pretty good hiding places. This also makes for spectacular and exciting walking safaris with some of the wildlife rangers. Both Tongole Wilderness Lodge and Bua River Lodge offer quality accommodation in locations that make you feel like you are further from rest of the world than ever. So why visit Malawi? You mean you are still not convinced? Tourism is also a good way to support a poor country since most of the companies contribute greatly to the local communities. And in addition to the handful of tips above, much more is on offer. The friendly and easy-going people are still the main reason to go. They will inspire you to continue to shake hands of unknown people even upon your return home. You are likely to pick up the habit of asking “how are you?”, “where do you come from?” and “how are you family?” and actually want to hear their response. And I am pretty certain that a trip to Malawi will inspire you to share more smiles and pay more attention to the people around you than to the overflow of social media updates. At least for a short while. It won’t take long until you will want to go back again, either. Enjoy! Getting there and around Lilongwe is not in any way a hub. It is barely connected to any, even. You will have to transit in at least one other African city. KLM/Kenya Airlines flies daily from Amsterdam through Nairobi, while South African takes you there directly from Johannesburg and Ethiopian does the same from Addis Abeba. Economy flight tickets from Europe range from 670 to 1100 USD return. Public transportation is poor, crowded and irregular. I would recommend renting a car, or getting the lodge where you will stay to arrange for a pick up from the airport. Most are more than willing to combine a visit to town with meeting a guest. You can go – and make a change for 1001 families But how about experiencing Malawi in a totally different way? I’m involved in a non-profit company that provides solar energy solutions to locals and businesses in one of the poorest regions in Malawi. Less than 3 percent of the households there have access to electricity. Within the next year we aim to provide lights to 1001 new households in the poorest areas of villages. To help us achieve our goal, please consider contributing to our crowd-funding campaign. One of the bonuses is the possibility to sign up for a trip to the country in October, 2015. 2,700 USD will include flights (economy class) from a European capital city and accommodation in a double room during ten exciting days. We will bring you to Nkhotakota to learn more about our projects, you will relax by the lake, go on a safari and really get a good feel of the real Malawi. But the best bit is that that you will support installation of lights to several poor families. For more details of this trip and other ways to support, please visit our crowd funding site. Relevant links Nkhotakota Youth Organisation Fish Eagle Bay, Nkhotakota Bua River Lodge Tongole Wilderness Lodge Hippo View Lodge, Liwonde National Park Cool Runnings, Senga Bay Ilala Ferry timetable (from May 2015) Lake of Stars Music Festival List of companies doing Safaris in Malawi

Have you ever been to a truly poor country? I am not going to try to define what is a “truly” poor one, but there are 26 countries with less than one thousand USD in gross domestic product (GDP) per capita. How many of them do you think are in Africa? It goes without saying that most of the world’s poorest countries are in Africa. But how bad is it? Very bad. 23 of the 26 countries with a GDP per capita of less than 1,000 USD are in fact in Africa, according to the World Bank. It measures GDP in USD per capita divided by the population (midyear). The 2010-2014 figures show that the poorest country in the world is 385 times poorer than the richest. 26. Lesotho: 996 USD 25. Zimbabwe: 936 USD 24. Comoros: 861 USD 23. Haiti : 832 USD (third non-African country) 22. Benin: 825 USD 21. Sierra Leone: 788 USD 20. Mali: 766 USD 19. Burkina Faso: 720 USD 18. Nepal: 698 USD (second non-African country) 17. Uganda: 677 USD 16. Afghanistan: 666 USD (first non-African country) 15. Rwanda: 652 USD 14. Togo: 646 USD 13. Mozambique: 619 USD 12. Eritrea: 590 USD 11. Guinea-Bissau: 586 USD 10. Ethiopia: 568 USD 9. Guinea: 550 USD 8. Congo, Democratic Republic: 475 USD 7. Liberia: 461 USD 6. Madagascar: 449 USD 5. Niger: 441 USD 4. The Gambia: 423 USD 3. Central African Republic: 379 USD 2. Burundi: 295 USD 1. Malawi: 253 USD And the other side of the list, where people make almost 400 times more? See the world’s richest countries.

The world’s richest countries are much more geographically spread out than the poorest, yet there are no African or South American countries on the World Bank‘s list. It measures GDP (gross domestic product) in USD per capita divided by the population (midyear). The figures are for 2010-2014. It may come as no surprise that Norway, my own oil rich country, is on the very top – narrowly beating Qatar, another oil country. Norway: 97,363 USD Qatar: 93,397 USD Australia: 61,887 USD Denmark: 60,634 USD Sweden: 58,887 USD Singapore: 56,287 USD United States: 54,629 USD Ireland: 53,314 USD Iceland: 52,111 USD Netherlands: 51,590 USD Austria: 51,127 USD Canada: 50,271 USD Finland: 49,541 USD Germany: 47,627 USD Belgium: 47,517 USD United Kingdom: 45,603 USD France: 42,736 USD United Arab Emirates: 42,522 USD Brunei: 40,776 USD Israel: 37,032 USD Japan: 36,194 USD Italy: 34,960 USD Spain: 30,262 USD South Korea: 27,970 USD Cyprus: 27,194 USD How about the other end of the scale? Very different numbers, as you can see here.

Are you a world traveler? Congratulations! That’s the only thing I can say… This is a guest post by Adrian Porras from Costa Rica. He recently got in touch with me via email: “Greetings! I’ve been to 5 other countries in my life, all of them in America. I love to travel and take pictures (i don’t have a camera though). We definetely live in different worlds. I wish I had an opportunity to travel like you… I would work very hard to do so but in my country that’s not possible. I wish you could help me find a way to fullfil my dream of being in all the continents. I can work with you or anyone else for a decent payment… Well, I just wanted to share a dream with you so that you understand how lucky you are.” And lucky I am, no doubt about it. I am from a well developed and democratic country, I have a decent salary and I can chose to spend most of it on what I love most – travelling. The majority of people do not have that option. I challenged Adrian to write a post for garfors.com, from his perspective. Here it is. In general, I never traveled with my family. The reason? Well, I was born in rural Costa Rica and we didn’t have money to travel. Traveling was never high on our list of priorities. And I know that you may be thinking why would someone want to travel when that person lives in paradise? Because there’s a whole world out there to be conquered! I love to travel and I still don’t have the money to do so… That’s why I’m writing to all of you who have the chance to travel to incredible destinations, to think about how lucky you are… But please think about this when you go to another country: What about the people living there? Do they dream about traveling to a country like mine? In my case the answer is yes! I don’t care if you think that just because I live in a tropical paradise that has to be the end of the story for me. I’ve never been outside the American Continent but I dream about it all the time! I just look forward to establish connections with countries or cultures outside of America. I hope to get the possibility to travel all around the world. And preferrably soon, while I am still young and in a reasonably fit shape. Most people I know start travelling around when they are old, but I do not wish to wait that long, maybe having to wait until I am not fit and healthy enough. What stops me in doing it? In countries like mine, you are simply not able to afford it. I also want you to know this: It is really a dilemma for people who live in countries like mine, because we get tourists from all around the world all year round, and we dream about being tourists in other countries too. For some people traveling is a dream that comes true through staying in big hotels, going to big cities and spending a lot of money… For me, traveling is a different idea. I don’t mind going to places no one else plans to visit, to stay in cheap hostels in rural areas or buying my food from local markets. I don’t care if I have to travel long hours by bus or boat, with only a backpack. I just want the opportunity to do it. I want to challenge myself, to enjoy new experiences, to truly find myself, to learn about new cultures, to eat exotic foods, to experience new adventures, to take great pictures or to just have fun. Maybe one day I will write about my dream coming true. For now, enjoy your lives. Be thankful for how lucky you are and remember that there are millions of people around the world who wish to have at least a tiny bit of the opportunities to travel that you have. Adrian Porras, Costa Rica You can reach Adrian by email.

The English version contains pretty much the same as the Norwegian one, but it is much more handy and travel friendly. And less than half the price. It took less than 10 months from the Norwegian version of “198: How I Ran Out of Countries” – about my travels to every country – was released in Norway until it also came out in English. My book is now available to buy “everywhere.” List of online shops below. What to expect? I’ll quote the back cover: “Gunnar Garfors has visited all 198 countries in the world – as the youngest hobby traveler – and has encountered people, places and situations most can only dream of. The globetrotter has deftly woven his experiences together into a story that takes the reader on an emotive ride and establishes a connection with him and his quest. Expect outrageous tales grouped in original themes, complete with own chapters for every country.” Order it online: Alibris Amazon Brazil Amazon France Amazon Germany Amazon India Amazon Italy Amazon Japan Amazon Spain Amazon UK Amazon US Barnes & Noble Blackwell’s Bookbyte Book Depository Booksamillion CDon Norway Chegg Create Space eBay Kobo Powell’s Books Smashwords (eBook formats) Super Book Deals Valore Books Or buy it in a bookshop You may order the book at your local book shop, in which case you should make a note of the book’s ISBN number 978-0-9964785-9-5 to make the order process easier. Find a collection of reviews or see what people say on Goodreads. Happy or not with the read, I still appreciate if you leave your own review of the book on the website where you purchased it or on Goodreads. The suggested retail price is $14.98. That is less than a dime per country! The eBook version retails from $6.98.  Norwegian, please You’d rather want the Norwegian version? It was published by  by Det Norske Samlaget. You may buy it online from one of these fine online book shops: Adlibris Akademika Ark Bokkilden Haugen bok Norli Tanum Self-published My contacts in the international literature world are sparse, so I did in the end decide to self-publish in the US (using both Create Space and Ingram Spark) after having been given the blessing to do so by my Norwegian publisher. Quite a few of you have pre-ordered a version and asked for it to be signed. I am of course still happy to do so, but the costs of sending the book via Norway – the most expensive country in the world – and then on to you – are, let’s say, on the high side. Do however let me know if in Oslo, and I will be happy to make your copy non-returnable by adding a rather ugly-looking autograph on page 3. The sweetest “pre-order” ever was probably this one, which read: “I have a secret: my library buys me every book that I want, provided I patiently wait for them to process it. If you let me know when it’s in English, I’ll get the ****** City Library to purchase it for all the citizens here to read.” Alphabetical country list If you would like to tick off the countries you have visited, you can find an alphabetical list of all the countries in the world, here (download PDF), to print out.

The Norwegian government has authorized the dumping of 300 million tons of toxic waste in the fjord I grew up next to. This madness has been covered internationally by The Guardian, The Telegraph, The BBC and others. Luckily it turns out that the local 21 person strong village council can challenge the government’s controversial decision, and I have moved back home, after 15 years in Oslo, to give my vote to political parties that oppose this severe crime against nature. My vote may help the political parties opposing the plans obtain a majority after the local elections in Norway in September. And, more importantly, I may inspire others to also move to Naustdal to vote, and to encourage current residents to also say no. An own website has been set up, SaveOurFjord.org, to help explain the situation and to crowd fund towards a marketing campaign for the political parties opposing the fjord disposal. The 300 millions tons include 112 kilos of mercury annually. That is almost ten times as much as the 12-15 kilos of mercury which are being emitted in all of Norway per year (divided on 100,000 kilometeres of coastline). I find it incredible that Nordic Mining, a company with three employees and a bank overdraft of zero, has successfully managed to lobby local politicians and the government into accepting what will ultimately help destroy Norway’s reputation as a pristine, clean and spectacular paradise. Not to mention the effect it will have on Norway’s fish exports. Naturvernforbundet, an environmental organization, has labelled the project “one of the worst pollution scandals in modern history”, and I find it beyond belief that the project has been given the green light by so-called environmental minister Tine Sundtoft. On the date of her ministry’s acceptance, Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg was campaigning for Norwegian salmon in Vietnam, giving away free samples of healthy fish from the clean fjords of Norway. All featured on the 7 o’clock national news on Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation. Oh, the irony. A lot of Norwegians are opposing the plans of dumping the huge amounts of toxic waste into the fjord. 1,500 people have even stated that they will indeed join civil disobedience protests. I will rather challenge them to follow my example and move to Naustdal before the election to stop the pollution of the fjord in a legal manner. I think local democracy is a better way to stop this as soon as possible rather than resorting to civil disobedience as a desperate last attempt, and I have previously written about this in Norwegian too. Several Norwegian newspapers has covered my stance, and I have set up a website to help spread the word: www.flyttforfjord.org (flytt for fjord means move for fjord). #moveforfjord (#flyttforfjord) #voteno #Naustdal