The girl is about to set a record for the youngest person to visit 195 countries

Sophia Lee, 21 years old, from the US, has dreamed of setting a world record since childhood. After a solo trip to Costa Rica at age 13, she decided to pursue her goal of visiting every country in the world. At the age of 14, Lee learned of the Guinness record for the youngest person to visit 195 countries recognized by the United Nations. She also considered this goal because she enjoys conquering challenges and has a passion for travel.

For many years afterward, Lee continued to travel alone but never officially pursued the record. At the age of 17, after having visited more than 50 countries, she decided to start her journey seriously. Lee realized setting a record was more than simply reaching a country.

The Guinness Organization requires participants to provide documents proving their presence at each destination, and must prepare documents in advance. This caused Lee to return to many of the countries he visited to add to his records.

By mid-July, Lee had visited 189 of the 195 countries recognized by the United Nations. She hopes to complete the remaining 6 destinations by early August at the latest, including Mali, Chad and Venezuela and three other countries.

Lee said the hardest-to-reach countries are saved for the last leg because of complicated visa procedures, high costs and potential security risks.

According to Guinness regulations, participants only need to set foot in a country to qualify for achievement. However, Lee set higher standards for himself. Every trip, she tries to have a “meaningful experience” such as enjoying local food, chatting with people or visiting a typical natural, historical or cultural landmark.

Among the 189 countries he has visited, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Mongolia, Afghanistan and Pakistan are the destinations that left the most impression on Lee.

Spending almost her entire teenage years traveling also caused her to miss out on many familiar experiences such as prom, graduation ceremonies, or birthdays with her family. In return, Lee has friends in many parts of the world.

“I have friends in India, Ghana and many other countries, connecting with people from different cultures is a great experience,” she said.

From many years of experience traveling alone, Lee believes that the real world is much safer than many people imagine.

“As you travel more, you will realize that in every country and culture there are many kind, hospitable people,” she said.

If he completes the remaining six countries as planned, Lee will become the youngest person to ever set foot in all 195 countries recognized by the United Nations, according to Guinness standards.