Cape Town - A Frenchman took the took the name “Johnny Walker” to the next level after he walked from France to Cape Town.
Valentin Gain, 24, made the 12 400km journey within 16 months, trekking from his hometown of Landeronde to Cape Town.
“I live in a small village in the western part of France. The trip aimed to see different ways of living, different thinking and different cultures.
“I wanted to see how people are surviving who are not fortunate enough,” he said.
Valentin said with no training he planned his route carefully, and walked and hiked his way through several countries.
“I travelled through 19 countries, I just went through France and Spain in Europe, and then travelled through most of the African countries.
“I found that in the villages people don't have a lot of money but many of them know a lot of things about their environment and can feed themselves,” he said.
“In the cities, it is more difficult because there are still poor people and it is difficult to survive. You can be poor with money but rich in other ways.”
He left his hometown with 3 000 euros in his pocket and slept in friendly villages, at police stations and even churches.
“In the villages, I would go see the chief and ask for shelter. In the towns, I would go to Catholic churches and I also had my tent,” Valentin said.
However, his journey wasn't always easy as he had several setbacks, including falling ill.
“I got sick a lot because of Malaria and my body isn't used to the food and the water (in Africa).”
Valentin now wants to return home to France and is pleading with good Samaritans for assistance to reunite him with his family.
“The only solution is to take a plane, so I would like assistance from anyone to help me.
“If some people are going to the north of Africa or any country in Europe with a cargo plane I could go in the cargo hold,” he pleaded.
“I was looking for some sponsorship and I could do some social media videos for them.”
Valentin is now bouncing around Cape Town as different residents are hosting him every day.
If anyone would like to assist him, he can be reached on Whatsapp at +33 619837826.