He has never stopped pursuing his passion for world travel—journeys filled with adventure and discovery that earned him the title of the “Modern Ibn Battuta.” This time, Dr. Ahmed Magdy, a young physician from Fayoum, spent 200 days exploring Eurasia on an astonishingly low budget of €300, visiting 15 European cities.

This latest trip follows his earlier travels to about 15 Asian cities, which cost him less than 8,000 Egyptian pounds. Now in his twenties, Ahmed excelled throughout his studies, ranking among the top students in Fayoum during both primary and secondary school, and later achieving national distinction in Azhar competitions for Quran and academic excellence. He graduated this year from Al-Azhar University’s Faculty of Medicine with a very good grade and has since been accepted as a research fellow in the Department of Internal Medicine at the University of Kentucky, USA. He has also been awarded both the Bronze and Silver British Excellence Awards.

A Global Dream

Speaking about his ambitions, Ahmed explained that his ultimate dream is to visit every country and capital in the world. His recent journey across Eurasia—geographically encompassing both Europe and Asia—allowed him to explore more than 30 countries in 200 days. His short-term goal is to publish a book titled “200 Days in Eurasia”, while his long-term goal is to visit every continent before the age of 30.

Traveling Europe on a Shoestring

Despite Europe’s reputation for high travel costs, Ahmed managed his trip with extraordinary frugality. Drawing on friendships made during previous journeys, he convinced fellow travelers to join him. Together, they rented a camper van, which served as both transportation and accommodation. His meals were simple—beans, canned tuna, and bread sustained him through much of the trip.

He visited 15 cities across countries including Germany, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, and Romania, many of them remote and hard to reach—mountain peaks, waterfalls, lakes, and ancient castles perched high above valleys.

Unforgettable Sights and Lessons

One highlight was a visit to Italy’s only pediatric asthma treatment center, uniquely located on the shores of Lake Cadore, where research showed the air to be the cleanest in Italy. The facility provides not only medical treatment but also full accommodation and entertainment for children. Ahmed also climbed the Dolomites (part of the Alps) to a height of 1,534 meters, explored Romania’s Dracula’s Castle, scaled Germany’s highest peak, Zugspitze (2,962 meters), witnessed the majesty of Rhine Falls in Switzerland, and toured the Romanian Parliament Palace—the world’s heaviest administrative building, second in size only to the U.S. Department of Defense, and the most expensive civilian government structure ever built. He was particularly inspired by Anca Petrescu, the chief architect who led the project at just 28 years old.

Lessons Along the Way

Ahmed says his travels taught him powerful lessons about honesty, productivity, and creative marketing. In Switzerland, he was struck by small wooden stalls left unattended along rural roads, filled with beautifully packaged local produce, relying entirely on customers’ honesty to pay.

He was also moved by the words of a 72-year-old Austrian woman who cycles half an hour to work every day. When he asked why, she answered: “When we stop exercising, we stop living.”

Thrills in the Sky

Not all of his adventures were on the ground. In Switzerland, he soared across the skies after climbing a mountain 2,167 meters high, strapped into a harness with eagle-like artificial wings.

For Ahmed, true happiness lies in his ultimate mission: to visit every city in the world—a dream he continues to chase with determination and joy.