The first Brazilian to travel to every country in the world – 09/29/2023 – Guia Negro

My name is Nataly Castro, I’m from Vila Carrão, east of São Paulo. I am 28 years old, daughter of a carpenter and a neuropsychologist. My parents always encouraged me to invest in my studies, as they knew that education would take me far. Although we didn’t have a great financial life, my family always did everything to ensure that I, my brothers and cousins ​​at least had food on our plates and education.

About four years ago, the idea of ​​visiting all the countries recognized by the UN in the world and then starting an exchange scholarship project for young low-income Brazilians to study abroad came up. The intention was also to compete for the Guinness world record, for a woman who traveled all countries in record time.

The cost of the trip would be around R$500,000. As I didn’t have that amount, I had the idea of ​​opening a cafe to raise funds. A few weeks after renting the space, the pandemic began and the plan to start the trip was postponed. I used this period to set up the business and develop the travel project, seek partnerships and sponsorship.

In total, more than 50 thousand messages were sent. He believed that a project of this size with a socio-educational proposal would attract attention and raise funds quickly, but that was not what happened.

Of the 50 thousand emails, I had five positive responses, and that was when I decided to start with what I had, because if I waited for perfect conditions I would never start. As I had invested everything in the café, I left the establishment open in the hope of raising funds to pay for the trip. I started my trip around the world with R$15,000 and six partnerships.

I left knowing that many things would happen along the way. It was time to explore the world, discover new cultures, customs, learn, teach and inspire. In the third country I had an accident and I overturned my motorcycle, I was taken by ambulance to the hospital.

The bone in my right foot cracked and I had to continue the journey with my foot bandaged, using a crutch and boarding in a wheelchair. I knew what I wanted and I couldn’t let that situation stop me. They were countries with crutches, medicine for pain, tears and adventures.

I managed to visit 50 countries with the money I had. This was possible because I have the ability to plan routes, prioritize what is essential, and reduce costs through accommodation along the way. I visited another 30 countries by bus through the Flixbus sponsorship and saved a lot on meals with the Priority Pass partnership, which gave me unlimited access to VIP lounges at airports.

My financial resources were coming to an end when I decided to sell the café. I gave up one dream to support another. I was sad, but at the same time I knew it was something worth it, after all I’m an entrepreneur and I knew that down the road if I wanted to open another one I could do it.

I couldn’t sell the finished coffee shop, so my family dismantled it and sold it item by item. For each piece sold, they sent me the amount to continue my journey. Weeks later, the first company that sponsored my project financially appeared, BeFly, the largest business ecosystem focused on tourism, which allowed me to visit more than 60 countries.

Traveling is incredible and an opportunity to explore the world we live in. The comfort zone is good, but it’s comfortable. When we open ourselves to the world, we are surprised. We are subject to experiencing negative situations, but it is important to see what that experience has to teach us, to show us.

It’s been a great learning experience to get to know so many cultures and customs of people from other countries, to see that everyone has their own way of living and thinking. This diversity shows us that we are similar and at the same time very different.

Traveling alone is about discovering yourself; you work on yourself, on your thoughts, attitudes, speeches and discover how much you have to learn. The good thing about traveling alone is having control over your choices. The script is yours, the time is yours and so is your taste.

Being a woman traveling alone has its pros and cons. The good thing is making new friends. There are places where being a woman is also an advantage, as people try to care, protect, bring you close. How many doors were opened, free meals, accommodation, rides and various help I received along the way precisely because I was a alone woman.

The negative point of being a woman traveling alone is the issue of vulnerability when we go through some places that have a lower safety index. Places with little public security, in conflicts, wars or where women do not have many rights.

Due to the time I have to achieve the objective, the plan was to stay in the countries for a short time. But a lot of things changed during the trip, there are places I stayed for half a day and others I stayed for a few weeks.

I’m in the final stretch of the trip and I can say that if money weren’t the problem, I would be able to finish this trip in less than 1 year.

I believe that visiting a place goes far beyond the time you spend there, but rather, what you did during the time you were there. I am opening doors and paths, inspiring, generating opportunities and showing possibilities. My trip is an example of overcoming, resilience and power as I am not just doing tourism, but carrying out a journey to connect people and dreams.

I have visited more than 135 countries and will reach my goal of visiting 200 soon. The African continent was chosen to end the project with a flourish. There is a very special reason to end your trip in Africa, after all there are 54 countries with so much history, culture, diversity and power. The African continent is a cradle of civilization, with African roots, when stepping into the first country it was a feeling of belonging, as if I had returned home without even having been there.

My trajectory

My mother said we had to be great students twice: first because it was our duty and second because we are black. During my adolescence I suffered some episodes of racism at school. Some students did not accept a young black girl standing out, being chosen by teachers and directors to participate in events and projects. I received nicknames, insults, threats, shoves and spit.

For months I kept it and went home without telling anyone, but my mother found out what was happening when she started getting called several times at school to pick me up early.

I was tired of that situation and starting to feel depressed. I started to think that taking my life would be a solution to end everything. Unfortunately, I attempted suicide three times.

In one of them, the sky was beautiful and there was only one plane passing by. I looked at the plane and thought: where is this plane going? It’s full of people going somewhere. Imagine if one day I get into one of these and travel to places where no one knows me, where no one judges me and that way I can be free and happy.

That moment was my turning point and then I said: because I’m going to get into one of these, invest in myself, in my education, travel the world, make new friends and start over. I gave up on the attempt and told myself that I wouldn’t take my life because of people’s opinions.

I started looking for study opportunities, exchange scholarships, work, etc. Today, I am a travel journalist and digital nomad. I’ve been on the road since 2013 and had the opportunity to participate in a cultural competition in my city, winning an exchange scholarship to study English in Ireland.

I studied and worked as a nanny, waitress, maid, kitchen assistant, cashier and barista. I traveled to a few countries and that alone sparked the desire to explore the world. After a year, I returned to Brazil and decided to move to a country where I could practice English. That’s when I packed my bags and moved to the USA, there I put my English into practice and also worked. Then I went to Europe and started my nomadic life, changing countries from time to time.

I invested in lectures and events to learn about the travel and tourism industry, bloggers and digital nomads. I created the Viaje Sem Limites profile to share travel experiences and inspire other people.

After a few years of being a digital nomad, working remotely and traveling, I decided to return to Brazil. During this period, the idea of ​​traveling around the world and also opening a café arose.

During the research I saw that in the world with more than 8 billion people, an average of 150/170 visited all countries. At the time there was no Brazilian who did this, and also only one black woman in the whole world. I immediately thought: then I’m going to be the first Brazilian and black woman to do this, and automatically, the second black woman in the world. And here I am about to make this big dream come true.