(Seychelles News Agency) - A medical doctor from Venezuela living in Seychelles has a hobby which would impress - and maybe overwhelm - Darth Vader himself. 

Luis Campanella has a collection of around 3,000 action figures, and many are from well-known genres like Star Wars.

Not everybody has so much passion and is ready to pack and carry part of a collection all the way across the globe. Campanella though did just that. He flew part of his collection all the way to Seychelles from his South American homeland.

“I started this hobby in 1998 and it is something I am passionate about. I am also in the process of bringing in some more of my collection from Venezuela,” Campanella told SNA.

Campanella said that “at the time when I started my collection 20 years ago I started with only Star Wars stuff. Along the way, I added some others lines, like Marvel, Saint Sita, and the Power Rangers.”

“Since 2014, I have begun to collect Japanese robots like Mazinger Z, Getter and others,” said Campanella.

Mazinger Z is a Japanese super robot manga series written and illustrated by Go Nagai. The first manga version was serialized 1972. Mazinger Z has spawned several sequels and spinoff series, among them, being Great Mazinger, UFO Robot Grendizer, and Mazinkaiser.

Campanella said that his collection contains some rare pieces. “My top three is a Mazinger Z Vintage Jumbo which is approximately 60cm tall from the brand Mattel of 1977. The other is a Star Wars Millennium Falcon in mint condition from 1996.  The third one is a transformers auto made in the 80s,” added the doctor.

Campanella said that his plan is to continue to build his collection. (Luis Campanella)Photo license: CC-BY

The doctor came to Seychelles – a group of 115 islands in the western Indian Ocean - in 2016. Originating from Valencia - the capital city of Carabobo State, the third largest city in Venezuela. The city is an economic hub with Venezuela's top industries and manufacturing companies.

Campanella, who is the only Venezuelan medical doctor working on the island nation, studied at the Romulo Gallegos University. The doctor based at community health centres said that his country “has great natural resource and wonderful people.”

“A little bit of everything brought me to Seychelles. First of all, God brought me here. It’s a new adventure, new experience. I am in paradise because that is what Seychelles is, a paradise and a new challenge in my career,” said the doctor.

Campanella said that the island life is great, “with nice people, nice food, nice culture and most of all everything is natural and fresh.”

Campanella said that his plan is to continue to build his collection. “Every time I have the opportunity I buy something from overseas. This is my hobby and my lifestyle and it is a good way to invest plus it is a good decoration.”

“This is a dedication and a passion more than a hobby. I invite everyone to start their own collection. This is not new. It is an old hobby, over the years people have collected coins, currencies, stamps that was the beginning of all collectors world,” concluded Campanella.