A CYCLIST who has been travelling the globe since 2004 has returned to Bahrain for the second time as part of his tour.
Somen Debnath was in Saudi Arabia earlier in the week and after a quick three-day trip to Bahrain, the 39-year-old is set to take off to his next destination today.
Having covered most of the Gulf during his previous stint in the region between 2012 and 2015, he returned this year after Saudi Arabia began welcoming Indian visitors in 2019.
Saudi Arabia is number 170 on Mr Debnath’s travel itinerary.
The Indian cyclist plans to visit 191 countries covering almost 200,000km by May next year.
“It is a delight to be back in Bahrain and see how the country has grown and developed since my last visit in 2013,” he told the GDN.
“I was honoured to meet the Indian Ambassador in Bahrain on the day I arrived. Unfortunately, I am only here for a very short time, but I am humbled by the generosity shown by my host, Partha Choudhuri, a fellow traveller, and all the people I have met so far.”
Mr Debnath takes off today to Nepal from where he will begin his final leg covering South East Asia and Australia.
The globe-trotting activist is on a mission to raise awareness about HIV-Aids and has been on the road since May 27, 2004, giving lectures in schools, universities, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and other institutions.
His travel is backed by donations from individuals and companies.
The intrepid traveller has reportedly met 72 prime ministers, 38 presidents and numerous royal members all over the globe since he embarked on his journey.
Interestingly, Mr Debnath, who hails from the eastern state of West Bengal, was also captured by the Taliban militants while travelling in Afghanistan in 2019 and spent 24 days with the fighters, cooking curries for them!
After spending two weeks in Bahrain during his last visit in 2013, he described the kingdom as the “most tolerant and friendly” country he had visited so far.
“Bahrain’s hospitality is warm and so are the people here. They love Indian culture and appreciate the work of expatriates working in the kingdom,” Mr Debnath had told the GDN previously.
The adventurer was inspired at the age of 14 after he read an article about a homeless person who was left to die in front of the Medical College of Calcutta, abandoned by his villagers.
Two days after he completed his Bachelor’s degree in Zoology from the University of Calcutta in 2004 he decided to travel all over India before pedalling abroad.
“My mission spread first to the people from my village, then my country and now it is a global campaign,” stated Mr Debnath.
sandy@gdnmedia.bh
naman@gdnmedia.bh
&uuid=(email))