They say laughter is the best Medicine. Meet Álvaro Neil, the biciclown. A former lawyer in Madrid, he left his job in 2004, sold all possessions and bought a bike and a ticket to South America. Since then he’s pedaled his way through over 50 countries, 4 continents with the ultimate goal of cycling around the world by 2014. That’s over 100 countries spanning nearly every corner of this great planet. His reason? To bring laughter and joy into the darkest corners. He calls his Mission “Miles of Smiles”. Think of it like Doctors without borders, only Álvaro’s medicine is his funny faces, his silly jokes and his magic tricks.
It doesn’t take much to touch people. An extended hand, a red cotton ball, a tiny smile. When the world seems like such an enormous, indefinable map and the vast ocean of suffering that exists appears too deep to even begin to cross… think of Alvaro Neil, pedaling his way one day at a time, mile after mile. Only the clothes on his back, living each month off 200 dollars, full of the joy and freedom of adventure and paid in full by the laughter of the children he entertains every single day.
I know it brings a smile to my face. And for me that alone is enough. Because really, what more is there… when all the superficial responsibilities of life are stripped away and condensed to their essential core? Today’s goal: Make someone smile. Spread the laughter.
You can read more and follow Alvaro on his tremendous journey at his website biciclown.com. And thank you too Karmatube for the terrific video.
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