Freeconomy backpacker forced to quit England to India peace walk

Man who aimed to walk to India forced to quit

A British man who aimed to walk from Bristol to Gandhi's birthplace in Porbander, India without spending any money has been forced to give up at Calais.

Mark Boyle, 28, who began his trip with only t-shirt, sandals and a bandage four weeks ago, hoped that strangers along the way would provide him with food and places to stay.

He is a member of the Freeconomy movement, which believes in a " moneyless society in which no money changes and there is no duality between giving and receiving", and would like to see money disappear altogether.

After reaching Calais Mr Boyle made the decision to quit his trip because as he could not speak French people thought he was an asylum seeker or a freeloader and would not give him food or board.

The 28-year-old kept an online diary of his adventure, where in one of his final entries he wrote: "…they had also seen us as just a bunch of freeloading backpackers, which is the complete opposite of what the pilgrimage is about".

The peace venture was satirised by MND:

Freeloading Euro Backpacker Upset People Think He's a Freeloading Euro Backpacker

Yes, the world is all in darkness. Despair is still our uninvited companion. The hand of black death still grips us tightly.

Imagine these darn French people? Looking upon this scruffy, unkempt, penniless, freeloader looking for a free meal and imagining he is a scruffy, unkempt, penniless, freeloader looking for a free meal! Don't they know what is at steak here (uh, I mean stake)? Why it's none other than peace in our times, man! You know how Brits like to have "peace in our times," doncha? Heck, it's always just around the corner.

Oh, those French talk a good game about all that peace stuff, but here — right when peace was almost within their grasp — they let it all slip away and just because they refused to part with a meal or two. Not a speck of cheese, a thimble of wine… not a single croissant could these misers spare.

So, now humanity will have to wait for another scruffy, unkempt, penniless, freeloader looking for a free meal to bring the enlightenment to us all.