Alma Asinobi is on a quest to make history by being the first Nigerian to visit the seven continents in the world with a Nigerian passport.
Her decision to take on this bold adventure did not happen overnight. It has taken a mix of intention, preparation, visa applications and reapplications over several months to finally get here.
But with a love and curiosity for travelling to see and experience the diverse cultures across the world, she intends to make history.
“I’ve applied for over 10 visas for this record, and some of which have been denied many times,” she tells Pulse. “The first one of them was denied four times. Like, I applied four times, and I only got it on the fourth attempt. I applied three times for another one, and I only got it at the third attempt. So it was very stressful having to do that.”
The challenge, she noted, is the Nigerian passport which she intends to use to attempt the Guinness world record. “If someone else had decided they wanted to break this record with a different passport, they wouldn’t have to worry about all of these things. They would just pick up their passport and go. That’s one less thing to worry about.”
Not leaving anything to chance, Asinobi has sought professional medical care in addition to preparing for the coverage of the entire event. “I’ve sought medical care from professionals just to ensure that I’m in good shape.”
“I’m also getting some equipment and all the right tech backup in place just to ensure that I’m able to get the footage and all the clips for the evidence and everything.”
All her documents have to be complete and easily accessible for this record, which is why she has to have them printed. She also has to align all the flights that she’ll be booking. “Because unreliable internet can be a thing, I have to print a lot of documents to avoid visa delays and whatnot.
“I have to also ensure that all the fights that I’m booking fall in place. Like, I go one after the other without really causing me too many delays.”
All these become necessary considering that she needs to be active throughout the whole attempt. “I can sleep, but I am also required to record content.”
“There’s an option for two minutes every hour and there’s an option for 10 minutes every 24 hours. So I’m supposed to record content at intervals. Hence, I can’t really sleep for a stretch.”
The decision to explore the world
Asinobi’s love for travel did not start until 2020 when she decided she wanted to see more of the world. While she enjoyed road trips to the village as a child during festive seasons, they only gave her a glimpse and sparked her curiosity for more.
Then as an adult, she picked up the interest in traveling internationally after going on a road trip to a neighbouring country during which she saw people of different cultures and languages. She was stunned by how contrasting they were and her desire to explore more became ignited.
“I went on a road trip. And they’re different. Like they speak a different language. The architecture is slightly different. You know, their way of life, the way they dress, it was just very different,” she fondly recalls. “And I was like, huh? If a country that is so close to us can be this different, then I wonder how far out of my comfort zone I would be if I went farther geographically. So, I decided to explore a lot more and I just haven’t stopped since.”
A strong support system
Asinobi, who is set to embark on the adventure on March 15, has said her strength to carry on comes mostly from her family and friends as well as everyone who has been rooting for her.
She is, therefore, energised to take on the challenge, even with a last-minute change of plans. “We recently found out that someone just broke the record. Unofficially, it was announced and updated on the website yesterday. And so the initial plan was for seven countries, seven continents, 70 hours, and this person set the record at 64 hours.”
“So now, we’re trying to be down around seven hours from the initial plan. And that is a bit hectic, especially considering I planned this record for months. I planned all the fights and everything for months, but all of a sudden, about a week to go, we are to do everything almost from scratch.”
“But, yeah, I’m drawing strength from everyone who’s rooting for me: my family, friends—my support system. It’s been easier with them on my side.”
