A woman has smashed the record for the most countries visited in the world while using a wheelchair.
Renee Bruns from Atlanta, Georgia has touched down in 117 countries globally, which is in itself almost certainly a world record, and has the official title of most visited in a year at 55.
The 39-year-old, who has a condition with impacts bone and cartilage development, has loved travelling since being a young child and convinced her mum to take her to all 50 states - something she achieved by the time she was 16.
Since then Renee has committed her life to visiting all 195 countries after having saved up for 15 years, which included heading off on a lengthy sabbatical last year.
"I feel very grateful that I'm that person, that I have that ability to fight through the fear that comes with [travelling as a wheelchair user]," Renee told The Mirror.
"I have a support system, my family and loved ones support me and encourage me. I was so lucky to be born where I was, as I have had the resources and means to travel.
"Some of the people that I meet who have disabilities, they're so far behind the opportunities I have. Some people are just trying to find access to a wheelchair."
Renee embraces the communities she visits during her travels and the opportunities which arise as much as possible.
Sometimes this involves heading abroad with her partner Tony, sometimes it means going off by herself.
"I was in the Maldives for about a week but I didn't go out to one of the fancy resorts, I stayed on the main island in a small hotel," she continued.
"I got to know the workers and local people. I went on a very rickety boat with some local people, we jumped in the water, swam with the stingrays, did some snorkelling.
"In some parts of the world, there is a language barrier. I was in Indonesia getting on a boat to do a tour, this man comes up, squats down, and it's very clear that he wants me to (climb on).
"He was all sweaty, but you've just got to roll with it. It was really nice of him."
Since she started travelling the world 20 years ago, Renee has seen a huge positive shift in people's attitudes towards her and other wheelchair users.
Generally they are much more welcoming and understanding than they once were, she says.
Much of the world is still difficult to navigate from a physical standpoint however, including the UK which Renee described as "beautiful" but with "work to do from an infrastructure standpoint".
"I hate plane travel, it makes me angry every time," she added. "In general the regulation is horrible. I've had broken and lost wheelchairs. The treatment by the staff is very demeaning and degrading."
A particularly impactful part of her sabbatical came when Renee visited several of the Pacific islands and realised how opportunities to see them may be fleeting.
"With climate change, some of these countries might be under water in my lifetime," she said.
"I wanted to visit them. The runway was underwater in Venuatu so you just can't get into the island.
"I went to Kiribati in the South Pacific. The people there very much know they have about 20/30 years.
"They say it in a very light hearted way, that a 'tsunami or cyclone could come in and we're just gone'."
In terms of future travels, Renee recognises that she's ticked off a lot of the easier countries to visit in her quest for all 195 UN recognised nations.
In a month she will head to Argentina, before considering some harder to visit spots including parts of Africa and the Middle East.
"High on my list is Madagascar," Renee said.
"This adventure has been 15 years in the making. I was saving every penny I had and putting it into a travel fund.
"I was very strict on keeping to the budget and I do a lot of planning."
