- Oct 02, 2026
- by Ashley Chen
- 164
Bhutan Through Other Eyes: Luiz Arten’s Journey Beyond Sight
Visually impaired traveller Luiz Arten explores Bhutan while pursuing an extraordinary worldwide dream.
Luiz Arten remembers Bhutan first by its silence.
Not an empty silence, but the deep, almost tangible quiet of the Himalayas—the kind that seems to settle over the mountains and invite travellers to become still. It reminded him of the Andes, yet it belonged unmistakably to Bhutan: a kingdom of temples, forests, prayer flags and stories of dragons.
Then come the other memories. The scent of wood. The feeling of being inside a fairy tale. Spirituality woven into everyday life. The kindness of strangers. And a guide who refused to let language or visual impairment stand between Luiz and the country he had travelled so far to experience.
For a man on a mission to visit every country in the world, Bhutan was more than another destination. It was a lesson in how much can be perceived beyond sight.
A diagnosis—and a decision
Luiz Henrique Arten Júnior, hailing from Mafra in southern Brazil who studied business administration at the Federal University of Santa Catarina, was diagnosed with Stargardt disease at the age of six.
The rare inherited eye condition affects the macula, the part of the retina responsible for sharp central vision. Its progression varies, but vision loss often begins during childhood or adolescence. There is currently no cure, although assistive technology and vision rehabilitation can help people make the fullest possible use of their remaining vision, according to the US National Eye Institute.
For Luiz, the gradual deterioration of his vision created a sense of urgency—but not surrender.
He transformed that urgency into an extraordinary ambition: to travel to every country in the world and pursue what he hopes will become a world-first achievement for a traveller with a visual impairment.
Beside him throughout this journey is his partner, Fabiana Farias. Together, the Brazilian couple have turned their shared passion for travel into a project with a purpose.
Their initiative, “O Mundo por Outros Olhos”—“The World Through Other Eyes”—is not simply an attempt to collect passport stamps. Luiz and Fabiana also travel in search of accessibility technologies, inclusive practices and practical solutions that could eventually be adapted in Brazil.
When the project began, Luiz had visited 19 countries. Today, the couple have reached 75.
Every border crossed brings them closer to their goal. More importantly, every journey adds to their understanding of what makes travel genuinely accessible—and what continues to exclude millions of people.
Bhutan beyond expectations
Luiz and Fabiana travelled to Bhutan with Druk Asia, beginning an experience that would challenge their expectations of the Himalayan kingdom.
Before arriving, Luiz admits that he imagined Bhutan would be far more authoritarian, with significant restrictions on filming and recording.
The reality was completely different.
“The people are very kind, welcoming, free and seem genuinely happy,” he says. “It was a really positive surprise to experience the country firsthand and see that many of the things I had imagined simply weren’t the way I thought they would be.”
The food, cleanliness, organisation and meticulous attention to detail all impressed the couple. Yet their guide, Choki Wangchuk became one of the defining figures of the journey.
Luiz and Fabiana do not speak fluent English, and describing a highly visual place to someone with limited sight requires patience, imagination and care. Choki responded by finding a real-time translation app that could render his explanations in Portuguese.
When the technology failed to capture something properly, he followed up through WhatsApp, ensuring Luiz did not miss the stories, historical details and cultural context behind the places they visited.
Through that extra effort, Luiz gained access not only to Bhutan’s architecture, but also to the meanings held within it—its history, beliefs and cultural symbols.
Accessibility, in that moment, was not an expensive installation or a complicated system. It was a person recognising a barrier and choosing to remove it.
The climb to Tiger’s Nest
That spirit of cooperation mattered most during the journey to Paro Taktsang, the monastery known around the world as Tiger’s Nest.
Clinging dramatically to a cliff above the Paro Valley, the sacred site is reached by a mountain trail. For Luiz, the difficulty was not simply the distance. Rain had made the rocky ground more challenging to navigate, and visual impairment turned every uneven step into a careful calculation.
With Fabiana beside him and their guide offering support, Luiz completed the entire trail within the expected time.
The achievement was not about pretending the difficulty did not exist. It demonstrated what becomes possible when determination is matched by practical support, patience and trust.
This distinction matters. People with disabilities are often expected either to stay away from challenging experiences or to face them entirely alone as proof of personal strength.
Luiz and Fabiana’s journey suggests a more inclusive alternative: independence does not mean the absence of assistance. It means having the freedom, information and support necessary to participate on equal terms.
A different way of knowing a place
Travelling with a visual impairment has changed how Luiz encounters people.
“Because I cannot see, I don’t usually create stereotypes about people based on their appearance or other visual characteristics,” he explains.
Instead, he forms impressions through behaviour—through the way people speak, assist, listen and share their culture.
In some destinations, he says, tourists are treated primarily as sources of money. In others, residents see visitors as people with whom they can exchange histories, customs and ideas.
Bhutan belonged firmly to the second group.
Luiz felt that the Bhutanese people were genuinely interested in sharing their culture while also learning about him, Fabiana and their life in Brazil. That sense of mutual curiosity transformed the couple from observers into participants.
Bhutan’s approach to tourism deliberately seeks to balance access with the preservation of culture and the environment. Its official tourism policy has long emphasised a “high-value, low-volume” model, while its Sustainable Development Fee supports cultural preservation, conservation, infrastructure and community development.
For Luiz, the result was a rare sense of cultural authenticity.
“In such a globalised world, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find,” he says. “That is exactly what makes Bhutan so rare and different from the other places I’ve visited.”
A lesson in enough
The most transformative moment of the trip arrived quietly over lunch.
On their first day, after visiting a temple, Luiz asked their guide why Bhutan is so closely associated with happiness.
The answer was disarmingly simple.
People often believe happiness lies in the next acquisition, the guide explained: more money, a newer car or a larger house. But satisfaction comes from learning to appreciate what one has already achieved. If you have worked for a car, why not allow yourself to be content with that car instead of immediately longing for something newer?
For someone pursuing a goal as enormous as the entire world, the message carried particular weight.
The conversation taught Luiz that ambition and contentment do not have to be enemies. It is possible to keep moving forward while remaining grateful for the ground already crossed.
“That conversation really changed the way I think,” he says. “It has even started to influence some of my plans for the future.”
From inspiration to inclusion
Luiz and Fabiana want their travels to create more than admiration. They want them to produce change.
One reform Luiz advocates is free admission for companions of visitors with disabilities when an attraction cannot provide its own trained assistance.
A companion in that situation, he argues, is not participating solely as another tourist. They are also providing the support that makes the experience possible.
Fabiana’s presence illustrates how important that support can be. She is not simply travelling beside Luiz; she is his partner in an ambitious international project, helping him navigate unfamiliar environments while sharing the discoveries, difficulties and responsibilities of the journey.
True accessibility goes beyond ramps and reserved spaces. It includes clear communication, knowledgeable guides, audio description, appropriate technology, fair admission policies and a willingness to respond to individual needs.
It also begins much earlier—with the belief that travellers with disabilities belong everywhere.
After navigating Bhutan’s mountain paths, temples and unfamiliar language with the support of Fabiana, their guide and Druk Asia, Luiz offers an unequivocal recommendation.
“With such helpful and supportive guides who are always willing to assist, I believe anyone with a disability can have an incredible experience in Bhutan,” he says.
The kingdom now holds a permanent place in the couple’s hearts. But their journey continues: another flight, another border and another opportunity to discover how the world can become more inclusive.
Luiz Arten may be losing his sight, but together, he and Fabiana are bringing something else into sharper focus.
To experience the world fully is not merely to look at it. It is to listen to its silences, recognise its kindness, challenge its barriers and return home determined to make it more open to everyone.