BEIJING (AFP) - A disabled ex-soldier has finally reached the lofty heights of Tibet after spending eight years walking 110,000 kilometers (68,200 miles) across China.
Zhang Xikui, 47, from the northwestern province of Shaanxi, posed Tuesday in front of the Potala Palace in Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, Xinhua news agency reported Wednesday.
His trek though is far from over, as he plans to set foot in Taiwan in 2006, then walk to Beijing where he wants to amble into the main stadium during the 2008 Olympic Games.
Zhang was injured during the Sino-Vietnam war in 1979 and retired to his hometown in 1982, Xinhua said, without elaborating on what kind of disability he was suffering from.
He started his expedition in the eastern city of Nanjing in 1996 and has since travelled through 31 provinces and regions.
En route, he has worn out 92 pairs of shoes, having walked on average 30 kilometers (nearly 20 miles) a day, Xinhua said.
No reason was given for his feat but Zhang said he was collecting information about the places he went and would donate the collection to the National Museum in Beijing.
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