Driving on route 50, west of Upperville, in a pouring rain, I noticed a solitary figure in a bright orange slicker walking on the side of the road. I thought, "how peculiar." It was a lonely stretch of road, far from any amenities. As I approached, I realized the pedestrian was carrying a placard displaying the words, "Walk for Tibet." I asked if he needed a lift. He politely declined, briefly explained his mission and gave me a web address. I visited the website: WalkForTibet2009.com and learned that he was Jigme Norbu, the Dalai Lama's nephew, and he was walking 900 miles from Indiana to New York to raise awareness of Tibetans' struggle for independence from China.

Later that afternoon, June Hughes alerted Adina Proffitt, the manager of Market Salamander, that Jigme was approaching Middleburg. Adina sprung into action and after brewing a pot of their finest "tea forte," went out to Route 50 and invited Norbu in for a complimentary lunch.

The next morning I joined him and a band of Tibetan friends for a portion of the walk to Washington. It was a brisk morning and people shared thermoses of hot tea. Several walkers carried Tibetan flags which fluttered wildly in the breeze, made all the more poignant by the knowledge that had we been in Tibet, we risked being shot on sight.

Jigme Norbu left Indianapolis on March 10 marking the 50th anniversary of the Tibetan uprising in Lhasa against Chinese rule. Averaging 22 miles a day, he completed the 900 mile walk to New York in 40 days. Although his feet were ravaged from walking such distances, he never missed a day. He traveled lonely stretches of rural highway and congested city streets regardless of the weather, assisted by Wangchuk Dorjee, a former member of the Tibetan Parliament-in-exile in Dharamsala.

Along the route, passers-by spontaneously offered him moral support as well as food, water, money and over night accommodations.

Upon arrival in NY, he led a rally at the Chinese Consulate. He dedicated the walk to the memory of his father, the Dalai Lama's brother, Thubten J. Norbu, who spent his life fighting for Tibet's independence as well as the memory of all Tibetans who have died in protest of Chinese suppression.

"When I walked, I thought of my people, how they're suffering, what they've been through," said Norbu.

Robert Barnett, director of the Modern Tibetan Studies Program at Columbia, has written, "China is seen as suffocating Tibetan culture… Random people would approach me in Lhasa alleyways, sometimes weeping, whispering and begging me to tell the world that the Chinese were denying them freedom…"

This is why Jigme Norbu walked 900 miles.