Parrish began working for Bell Labs in 1966.[6][7] In 1972, Parrish was transferred from Bell Labs to Illinois Bell.[8][9] In 1977, AT&T decided to sell its Electronic Switching Systems overseas.[10] Parrish retired in 1996 at age 51.[11][bettersourceneeded]
In 1965, at age 20, he spent the summer in West Germany, working in a metal factory in Hanau.[11] Parrish purchased an old motorcycle and lived in a room in the home of a German family.[13] By 1969, he had traveled through the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe[11] during the Cold War.[14] He made his first trip around the world in 1971.[11][15]
In November 2013, Parrish visited Conway Reef, located approximately 280 miles from the main islands of Fiji. According to the Most Traveled People website, he was ranked number one on their list at that time.[19] In February 2017, he completed the Travelers' Century Club list of 325 countries, becoming the 26th person to do so.[20][bettersourceneeded]
As of July 2022, Parrish had visited 937 of the 1,013 locations on the Most Traveled People list, maintaining the top rank.[21] He has also traveled to North Korea,[22] including visits to a war museum and monuments dedicated to Kim Il Sung.[23] During this trip, Parrish was selected by his group to place flowers at the grave of Kim Il Sung’s wife, Kim Jong-suk.[22]
Parrish received the ETIC Award for 2018, presented to him during the "Extreme Traveler International Congress."[32]
Parrish was awarded by the Travelers' Century Club president on March 11, 2017, for completing the TCC travel list of 325 countries. The award includes an engraved plaque on a pedestal of European crystal and a globe that rotates by solar power.[20][33]
In 2015, BBC Travel named Parrish as one of six travel pioneers for 2015.[17]
References
1 2 3 Bell Laboratories Record, July/August 1983, Page 14
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