600 Year Old Friendship

It was a Chinese navigator named Zheng He who traveled to the Western seas (Indian Ocean) and reached the shores of the east African coast who made the first contact with African people. He was born in 1371 and died in 1433.

Zheng He was a mariner, explorer, diplomat and fleet admiral, who commanded voyages to Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East and East Africa.Between 1405 and 1433 the emperor's government sponsored seven naval expeditions. The emperor wanted them to establish a Chinese presence and impose imperial control over trade.