What this man learned walking around the world

In January 2013, Paul Salopek set out on what was supposed to be a seven-year, 21,000-mile (33,800km) walk across the globe. He is not yet even halfway through.

The journey, which he calls the Out of Eden Walk, was to follow in the footsteps of mankind, the first humans having moved out of Africa to begin exploring the world several millennia ago. Salopek’s route would take him from Ethiopia to Argentina, via war-torn West Asia, the Silk Road, the Indian subcontinent (which he left just over a year ago, for Myanmar), across China and Siberia, and along the west coast of North and South America, down finally to Tierra del Fuego off the southernmost tip of the South America mainland.

Salopek is a journalist who walks from one topical story to the next instead of driving through them or flying out to them. In this age of tweets masquerading as news, and clickbait that screams for attention, he practises slow journalism: storytelling in a style that is anthropological while still newsworthy.

To read the full article, click on the link: https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3098249/following-footsteps-early-humans-man-walking-21000-miles

Salopek wanders through the ancient Nabataean ruins at Madain Salih, carved into sandstone outcrops some 2,000 years ago. These structures were used as tombs for the wealthy during the Nabataean era. Photo: John Stanmeyer / National Geographic