09 January 2008

BEIRUT: Armed with only a few backpacks and a bicycle, Pushkar Shah has spent the past 10 years of his life cycling around the world spreading a message of peace. From his home country of Nepal, Shah has pedaled everywhere from China to India, Canada down through the United States and into South America, Africa, Australia, and various countries in between.

Lebanon marks the 115th country Shah is passing through in his overall hope of visiting 150 countries by mid 2009.

"So far I have biked approximately 178,000 kilometers, the equivalent of circling the globe four times," said Shah.

Shah's mission of peace began in 1998 soon after the death of his father.

"My father was a Gurkah soldier in the Indian Army and he was killed in war while he was peacekeeping so I decided to do something special in my life as a result," explained Shah. "I became the peace messenger and now I am traveling around the world preaching this message everywhere, in every corner of the world," he added.

Shah originally dreamed of one day becoming a school teacher in Nepal, where he was born and raised, but this dream was shattered after his father's violent death.

"I wanted to become a high-school teacher and I changed my way of life. Now I'm like a student and I'm learning many things everyday from changing climate, weather, people, nature, food, language, culture, everyday I am learning many things from around the world.

Shah does not rely on sponsors to fund his trip but rather donations and offerings from the local people of the countries he is visiting. In Lebanon Shah has been welcomed with open arms by the small Nepali communities that reside in and around Beirut.

Shah explains that the biggest challenge in his trip is just getting through the day-to-day hope of finding a place to stay and something to eat. "In China I once had to survive for a couple of days off of orange peels and in Cuba I lived for days off of sugar cane because I was not able to obtain food from anyone," explains Shah.  Receiving food and shelter is something Shah depends on and in Lebanon Shah explains that he has "received both warmly and its been a good stay."

In his 10 years of cycling Shah has faced his fair share of less then peaceful experiences. In Mexico Shah was kidnapped at knifepoint and held hostage for hours before he was finally able to fight his captives off and escape. He has been robbed nine times - including once at gunpoint. In New Zealand Shah had his bike stolen. Upon hearing of the theft, Sir Edmund Hilary, the first man to climb Mount Everest, bought Shah a new bike. "I was very thankful for Sir Edmund's gift," said Shan.

Shah, who was biking through New York City days before the September 11, 2001, described the attacks as "overwhelming and unfortunate."

"My trip has been an emotional experience. Sometimes riding along I get lonely but to be able to see the world and meet wonderful people along the way is very rewarding," he added.

With 35 countries to visit in approximately a year, Shah is on the last leg of his mission to spread the word of peace across the globe. In 2010 Shah would like to climb to the peak of Mount Everest with all the flags he has carried from the 150 countries he hopes to visit.

When asked whether he had anything to say to the Lebanese, Shah replied: "War is not the answer. Without peace we cannot do anything in the world. Peace doesn't come through violence."

Copyright The Daily Star 2008.