Chinese traveller visits both ends of the globe - at the age of four
Company that provided cruise to Antarctica said boy was the youngest Chinese person to ever take the trip
A four-year old Chinese boy has visited Antarctica after a five-month trip with his parents overland from South America then by cruise ship to the southernmost continent.
The boy’s father, Xu Chenghua from Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, named his son Simba after the character in The Lion King, as he wanted his son to be healthy and strong so he could explore the world.
Last Tuesday, Xu, 35, his wife, nicknamed Xiao Zhu (piglet), and son completed their six-day cruise to the Antarctic Circle, Zhehjiang newspaper Du Shi Kuai Bao reported.
Xu had to persuade the cruise company to allow Simba to take the trip as it is normally limited to passengers over the age of 10 for safety reasons. He was then told his son would be the youngest Chinese person to ever make the trip.
Xu is an extreme sports lover has gone on expeditions to Tibet and the Xinjiang region dozens of times. He met his wife – who later quit her job as an engineer to travel with him – during one such Tibet journey.