Caroline goes round the world in 80 ways

DUBLIN woman Caroline Casey has completed a modern adventure version of the round-the-world trip created by author Jules Verne.

But instead of taking 80 days, the near-blind 31-year-old and three disabled companions took 80 different ways of travel. They used almost every imaginable mode of transport on their three-month trek, covering more than 20,000 miles in the process.

Caroline picked up a People of the Year Award last month for her tireless fundraising efforts for charity, which included a 1,000km-elephant ride across India last year.

This time round, ostriches, camels, husky dogs and oxen were among the animals which carried her on her latest amazing journey.

“It’s hard to pick one favourite thing we did but driving for the first time was a bit of a buzz. It was also great to be back in India again after last year,” said Caroline.

Her driving debut came on a 145-km an hour spin around the Malaysian Grand Prix circuit.

The travellers raised money for local charities in each of the 15 countries they visited, as well as bringing back funds for their individual organisations in Ireland and Britain.

Caroline’s accomplices were blind man Miles Hilton Barber, Mike McKenzie who has had both legs amputated, and heart condition sufferer Robin Dunseath, originally from Co Down. Other modes of travel included Hong Kong rickshaws and Roman chariots, San Francisco cable cars and London taxis.

They also went scuba diving and absailing on their way around the globe, on a journey that took in Scotland, Northern Ireland, Dublin, Rome, the Red Sea, Cairo, India, Bangkok, San Francisco, New York and Washington to name but a few destinations.

The group arrived yesterday morning back at the Reform Club in London, from where they had set out 100 days earlier on September 2.

The departure point was the very same as that of Phileas Fogg’s in Jules Verne’s novel, Around the World in 80 Days. Unlike the hero of the book, however, they had the convenience of aeroplanes, submarines, tractors and motorbikes.

Caroline returns to work next week with the Aisling Foundation, the fundraising organisation she set up two years ago to inspire people into thinking of disability in a positive way.

But she hopes to head off again in about a year’s time on another wild adventure.

“I find that when I travel, my mind just seems to open in a way it doesn’t when I am stationary.

“I’m not sure when or where, but I’ll definitely be going off travelling again,” she said.