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It all started with a dream of exploring the world.
Nguyen Noah, originally from Hai Phong, first traveled abroad in 2006 on a trip to China. At that time, he never thought about the word "record" or undertaking a long journey. But his life as a student in Europe opened another door for him: a passion for exploring the world.
He began his long journeys in 2007 with the goal of living and experiencing different countries, exploring the culture, history, lifestyle, and people of each place he visited. From the slums of India and the deserted islands of Yemen to the war-torn region of Sudan and the mysterious nation of North Korea, each country offered a unique experience, its own challenges, and a new perspective on the world.
Enjoying a drink at a cafe in Cuba.
Noah Nguyễn currently owns the YouTube channel "Lại Ngứa Chân" (Itching Feet Again) with over 850,000 followers. Here, he shares videos documenting his travels, cultural explorations, and daily life in the countries he visits.
"I want to live my passion, challenge myself, and prove that Vietnamese people can do what their international friends can do, including traveling to every country in the world. At the same time, I also hope to inspire young people who love to travel, so that they are more daring in going further to explore," he said.
Even countries with tense and unstable political situations like Syria couldn't stop Noah Nguyen's "itchy feet."
Footprints that go beyond the map.
By 2025, Noah Nguyen had achieved his goal of visiting all 195 countries of the United Nations, across Asia, Africa, and the Americas, flying to all countries in Europe and Oceania, and ending his journey in Mongolia, Asia.
On that journey, he had many memorable experiences, from the slums of India and the deserted islands of Yemen to the war zones of Sudan and North Korea. In 2024, Noah completed his exploration of eight island nations: the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Kiribati, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Palau, Micronesia, and the Marshall Islands – small countries scattered across the Pacific Ocean, often overlooked in mainstream tours, where he discovered people and countries that seem to have been forgotten in the world.
During his journey, he had the opportunity to meet a little-known tribe in Papua New Guinea, an island nation located in the southwestern Pacific Ocean.
Noah was particularly impressed with Africa, a place that taught him many things. There, he encountered tribes that still maintained "strange" customs, such as the lip-disc tribe, where women wore large discs under their lips, or tribes where women were expected to give birth in the forest. Some tribes still wore loincloths, used trees for clothing, made animal bones for jewelry, and used bows and arrows and spears for hunting and gathering. The children lived lives of hardship and deprivation, just as he had read in books and newspapers. In Africa, these things were still present every day.
Noah Nguyen poses for photos with Angolan children.
In Iraq and Cuba, people have a special affection for Vietnam and its people. However, not every country is friendly and easy to approach. In Djibouti, he was once chased away and physically assaulted by locals. In South Sudan, he was harassed by police while taking pictures. In places like Haiti and Ukraine, the times he visited were also unstable, requiring him to be cautious with every step.
Noah Nguyen was once beaten unconscious by robbers in Bogota, Colombia, and nearly lost his life if it weren't for a kind local woman who helped him, took him to the hospital, and cared for him throughout his recovery. Later, he returned to Colombia to meet this woman again and express his gratitude.
Noah Nguyen arrived in Afghanistan, a country with a complex and volatile political situation.
Despite having faced numerous dangerous situations, he chose to listen and learn instead of reacting negatively. His diverse experiences, from luxurious lands to impoverished ones, have given him a more realistic perspective on the world.
Having visited 195 countries in 19 years.
Nineteen years, countless flights, hundreds of passport stamps, thousands of faces seen – finally, the journey ended when he set foot in Mongolia, the last country on his list. To date, he is the first Vietnamese person to achieve this feat, and only about 400 people on Earth, with a population of 8 billion, have accomplished something similar.
However, Noah doesn't consider himself special or pursue a title. For him, "each journey brings many emotions, fulfills my dream of adventure, and also helps me create many interesting clips to share with the audience."
Every place Noah visits is a story he experiences and tells to others.
For him, what matters isn't the number of countries visited, but the lessons learned along the way. From learning how to save money and manage expenses to accessing and exploring lesser-known cultures, it's all part of a valuable experience that doesn't come at a high cost.
"I realized that if we work hard and save wisely, Vietnamese people can achieve what foreigners can, even with the limitations of our passports," he shared.
Noah Nguyen checks in in Mongolia, the final destination of his journey exploring 195 United Nations countries.
For Noah, the gains from his journey are invaluable: friends from all over the world, stories beyond books, and perspectives that wouldn't be possible if he stayed in his comfort zone. Therefore, after completing his journey to 195 countries, Noah didn't stop there. He plans to return to the places that once stirred his heart, such as Ethiopia, Bhutan, and some South American countries – where he wants to slow down and explore more deeply.
Noah Nguyen's journey continues. He keeps going, not for records or titles, but because he believes that: "This world is too vast to see through a screen. Each trip is an opportunity to understand myself better, to understand people better, and to understand the diversity of humanity."
