Franci Neely hasn't been everywhere in the world - yet - but she's well on her way to fulfilling that dream. The philanthropist and retired attorney is on a trajectory to complete her journey around the world in 2025. With a mere handful of countries left to go, Neely is one of just a few hundred people who will make their way to every country on the planet. From Fiji to Gabon to the Philippines to Saudi Arabia, Franci Neely has been capturing thousands of these precious moments on her Nikon camera, and sharing them on her website, francineelyphotography.com. 

"Go travel the world," Neely advises. "It's the best education." If global travel were a life course, Neely could lead the master class. She's been to more than 180 countries and counting. 

Breaking the Ice: Franci Neely Ventures to Antarctica 

Neely has journeyed to the southernmost continent thrice. Most recently she departed from the southernmost tip of Chile and made a pit stop on Elephant Island - a dot 150 miles northeast of the Antarctic Peninsula - which she calls "just an amazingly forbidding place and small," before continuing southward to lay eyes on more wonders.

"This is the first time that I've actually been in the Antarctic Circle," says Neely. "We saw amazing landscapes, and penguins of many types, and seals of many types, and a humpback whale with her calf swimming right around the Zodiac."

In The Footsteps of Giant's Causeway

Franci Neely says her time visiting the iconic Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland was another travel moment she will never forget. The 4-mile stretch along the Northern Ireland coast is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and Northern Ireland's No. 1 attraction, with about 300,000 visitors annually.

There's much to see, like 40,000 black basalt formations, which are thought to be the result of ancient volcanic eruptions roughly 50 million to 60 million years ago, during the Paleogene period. Although the area is largely uninhabited now, people once settled around the Giant's Causeway during the 19th century. From those early settlers, no doubt, a fanciful tale was born: Two giants, an Irish one, Finn McCool, and Benandonner, who lives across the Irish Sea in Scotland, began feuding and allegedly tore up the coastline as they heaved chunks of rock into the sea.

A snap-happy Neely captured it all on her trusty Nikon, like the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge. Swaying almost 100 feet above the Atlantic Ocean, the daring bridge was originally constructed by salmon fishermen in 1755. Sharks, dolphins, and porpoises dwell in the waters below. 

"It's beautiful," Neely says of the area. "But I can promise you I would not walk over that little rope bridge."

Norway Getaway

Franci Neely is so well traveled that there are many places she's been to multiple times, but she experienced a first when she got to Svalbard, Norway. She says it's not only a place Philip Pullman wrote about in The Golden Compass, it's also an archipelago in the Arctic Circle where polar bears gather. As one of Earth's northernmost inhabited areas, glaciers, reindeer, and Arctic foxes abound on the frigid terrain. While the northern lights can be seen there in winter, 24-hour sunlight shines through the summer months.

Neely visited the islands of the Lofoten archipelago. "I've cruised past before but never been [to]. And they are incredibly beautiful and have unusual architecture." 

During her time in Svalbard, Neely snapped a slew of images including photos of Norwegian officials and locals waving the country's red flag festooned with a navy blue Scandinavian cross, because she was there on May 17, Norway's Constitution Day.

"[They were] commemorating Norway's independence," Neely adds. "This day is celebrated by a parade, usually of children, waving Norwegian flags. We saw such a parade here at midday."

Norway's constitution was inked in 1814 declaring the country as independent. For the first time in three years, celebrations fully resumed after COVID-19 restrictions. Many Norwegians wear the local bunad, a traditional embroidered costume with over 200 variations. Hot dogs and ice cream are popular treats during the festivities and "Gratulerer med dagen," which roughly means "Congratulations on this special day" is the celebration's catchphrase.

Norway's royal family was in on the action, with King Harald V and his wife, Queen Sonja, wearing regal garb and greeting crowds. While Norway's king is the head of state, his duties are purely ceremonial and he doesn't hold political power.

And she couldn't leave without trying her hand at another favorite local pastime: dogsledding. 

Neely says she shared a memorable moment with some of the local canines. "I harnessed lovable, enthusiastic huskies to a sled and went off on a lovely sled ride, seven huskies happily trotting in the snow," she says. 

Next Stop: Australia

It's going to be a busy summer for Franci Neely. The ambitious traveler is planning on spending a month Down Under. "In August and the first half of September, I'm going to cruise the western coast of Australia, from Perth to Darwin, to see the Kimberley [region of Western Australia] and more," Neely describes. 

With the mindset of making it a meaningful nature-centric trip, she says she will be spending three days at an eco-lodge and soaking in the native wildlife and local landscape including rich culture and natural wonders such as the Great Barrier Reef and Fraser Island - which boasts sand dunes nearly 800 feet high and 100 freshwater lakes.

After Australia, where the cuisine aficionado just might sample a Vegemite sandwich, Neely says she plans to jet back to Africa in the fall. The vivacious safari seeker has extensively toured Africa, rubbing elbows in the Congo with the area's iconic sapeurs, who are known for their dapper suits and designer looks, and even learning tribal dances with the Pygmy people of Central Africa. She's strolled through vegetable and fruit markets in Sudan and embraced making new friends beside Cameroonian waterfalls. 

Burundi, Eritrea, Djibouti, and Ethiopia are the next stops on her travel agenda. By year end, "I'll be back in Africa," she concludes.