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Cycling around Europe

promoting Ethiopia

travelling to Ethiopia.
This positive feed-
back motivated me".

"When I finished my
studies, I wanted to
make my own perso-
nal contribution on
behalf of my coun-
"Now I have discovered that it is they
try". Ginnay went
who were wrong and not me. Up to
back to Ethiopia and
now, it's really been very successful
talked to the Ministiy
and I liave not had any problems. It's
of Torirism aborit
been the opposite. I have been so wel-
changing the ii'nage of
comed by a lot of Eairopeans, been

the corinty-and also
invited to their homes where they
his bike project.
For more than a year, Girmay cooked me meals, gave me clothes,
Mesfin, a young Ethiopian, has repaired iny bike for free. To date,
"If I had waited for financing, I worild
been travelling around Europe more than twenty newspapers kori-
have to wait for a long tiine," he says,
on his bicycle to promote his ghorit Eairope have piiiited my story
adding: "People may never liave met
country. On a cold winter's day and I have also received TV coverage
anybody who suggests this kind of
he arrived in Geneva, his last in Belgium and Gennany. It's beyond
project, so they do not tnist hiin. I did
stop in Switzerland. After a cou- my expectations. My parents are also
not want to give people the iinpression
ple of days in the City of Calvin, very sru'prised over this wann welco-
that I was begging for fiinds, so I deci-
me."
ded to do it on my own. If people
Ginnay will be setting off for Italy and
understand that this project can bffig
Spain before heading back home. He In every town where he goes, Ginnay
aborit some kind of change for the
started his campaign in Addis Ababa, will hold a meeting where he invites
counhy, then anybody is free to parti-
took the plane to Paris and cycled jorunalists, tour operators and the peo-
cipate and help me. Or they can create
through France to Belgium, the ple he has met. hi his higgage he has a
their own projects. These kinds of
Netherlands, Gemiany and finally video projector and a portable DVD.
initiatives will be of mutual benefit
Switzerland. So even in the smallest villages he can
both for Ethiopians and the
show them a docrunentaiy fihn aborit
Eriropeans."
His ii'ispiration came when studying his countty. "In Ethiopia we have eight
toui'ism in France. People asked hiin if world heritage sites recognized by

While working as a tourist @tide in
he had become chubby affer griving UNESCO. We have more than eighty
Ethiopia, he started saving money to

there, because they thoright that all different tribes, eigh% different lan-
realize his dream. His friends and
Ethiopians were tall and skinny. "I was gi'iages and more than 200 dialects."
family tried to make change his
very einbai'rassed becarise they told
inind. "They told me that I was crazy
me that Ekopia is a land of fainine," "There are lots of Europeans who are
and it would be impossible for me to
Ginnay explains. "I told them that tbis interested in cultural history, and in
do something like that." They said:
was not tnie and that they were victiins Ethiopia we have a lot to offer," he
"You know in Erirope there are lots of
of television. There is another image says, before telling us about Lucy, the
small n'u'al towns where people may
of Ethiopia. You may thinkthat there is Queen of Sheba, the first Christian
never have seen a black person in their
only desert in my corinhy, butwe have church, etc.
whole life. Perhaps there will be
more than twenty-five rivers, seven or
racism, xenophobia and finally it's
eight lakes, and the largest lake in the While travelling arorind he realized
very expensive and cold-what about
Hom of Africa. The counhy is only that a lot of people had bikes that they
the snow? Just do something else!"
about 10 to 15% of desseit; the rest is no longer used, so he asked people to
These were the recointnendations of
all green! The reason why there is star- givc him their second-hand bikes so
his well-intentioned friends.
vation in the countiy is not because of that he can send them back home.
a lack of resowces." "You see, in Ethiopia there are a lot of
However, being a deterinined young
school drop-outs. One ofthe reasons is
man, he decided to listen only to hiin-
"So I started to hold meetings, sho- that these children mrist walk a long
self-and just go for it. He put it this
wing people documentmy films, sho- way to school. In many cases they can-
way: "I just took my bike and announ-

wing photographs, brochures, etc. not afford transportation, so what I
ced that I worild go off on this torir."
Suddenly, people became interested in want to do is to create this bike project
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