Nabil Islam had his picture taken while on his bike in front of the “Welcome to Bangladesh” sign. He has a big smile on his face in that picture, even though he is very tired from riding so far. When he got close to the border, he said, “I had this feeling that this country is something special for me. My family lives here.” Nabil, 30, had lived in France all his life.

Nabil decided to make his dreams happen. He had the dream of travelling the Earth on a bicycle, so he saved up money for 5 years, quit his engineering job and headed out with his bicycle. He has already travelled to more than 12 countries in Europe and Asia. After 9 and a half months of starting his journey, he’s now in Bangladesh, his parents’ homeland. He had to take flights only 2 times on his way to travel all these countries.

Nabil’s last trip to Bangladesh was when he was a teenager, in 2006. He saw that this place had changed a lot in the last 17 years.

“Most of the roads are wide and smooth,” he said. There are now more buildings than before. It’s easy to get a cell phone signal because everyone has one. “Now there are engines in rickshaws too (easybike). Several of his friends are married and have children. The kids he saw last time are now all grown up, he said.

Source: https://en.prothomalo.com/bangladesh/hzboer5du6