bravo 235

This couple has been selling tea for 40 years only so they can travel the world together

Score so far? 23 countries


Think you are too broke to travel? Meet Vijayan and Mohana Vijayan, an enterprising and inspiring couple from Kochi, Kerala, who have funded their holidays to 23 countries by selling tea and coffee.

Married for 45 years now, the couple always dreamt of travelling the world together. Today, they can boast of having holidayed in all corners of the world, including the UK, France, Egypt, Brazil, Argentina, and Peru.

Must be a roaring business then, their coffee shop? Apparently not. Vijayan has been running Sree Balajee Coffee House in Kochi for over 40 years, with wife Mohana for company. Their shop, though popular with the locals, doesn’t churn enough to fund their wanderlust. Their formula? The couple puts aside Rs300 every day. At the end of three years, they pool all their savings, borrow some from the bank and head out to into the world. When they return, they are back to the coffee shop to repay their debt. And then the cycle continues.

What’s next on his list? “Sweden, Denmark, Holland, Greenland and Norway,” they say. Amen, we say.

The couple’s story is now doing the rounds of the Internet thanks to travel blogger Drew Binsky’s video. Watch it here:

*Correction: The copy has been rectified to state that the couple saves Rs300 every day, not every month.