Taipei - A Swiss couple have arrived in Taiwan after driving through 156 countries on their round-the-world trip which began 23 years ago, Taiwan press said on Sunday. Emil Schmid, 65, and Liliana Schmid, 66, arrived from East Timor and kicked off their trip across Taiwan Saturday from Kaohsiung, after their Toyota Land Cruiser was shipped to the southern Taiwan port city.
They began their round-the-world trip on October 18, 1984, going to the United States. Emil was a computer software engineer and their global adventure began with the simple wish to get away from schedules for a year.
But one year's travel proved insufficient, so they kept prolonging it and have not stopped since.
Over the past 23 years, they have visited North America, South America, Africa, Europe and Southeast Asia, going home to Switzerland only three times. They now hope to visit every country in the world, and have just 35 of the 192 states recognised by the United Nations left on their list.
Surviving on a budget of 36 dollars per day, they sleep in tents and drink disinfected river or lake water.
"Sleeping bag, snow jacket, water purifier and map are the most important things for our trip," the United Daily News quoted Emil as saying.
Summing up their adventure, the couple said the biggest reward from the trip is that they have seen the beauty of the world and experienced boundless friendship from strangers.
"We want our life to come to an end on our journey," they said.
The couple have posted their diaries, photos and press interviews on their website www.weltreikordreise.ch/a-starte.html
