Epilogue

Home. I've been back close to a month now, spending my days with seeing friends and family, being amazed by how many things have stayed the same and how many little things have changed and frankly doing absolutely nothing.

That last thing is not completely true, I am busy with some things but I'll come back to that later. The last couple of weeks of traveling were quite hectic and I honestly didn't have enough time do update this website.

But, to leave the Great Escape without it's appropriate ending would be a shame. So, here you have it: my final update.

To give you an overview of my adventures: I went from the middle of China all the way north to Xi'an and Bejing. After arriving in the capital of China I waited a couple of days for two friends that were making their way from Vietnam. Together with Jo and Cath I took the train from Bejing to Ulanbantor, the capital of Mongolia.

After a couple of days of touring the countryside, sleeping in tents and freezing to death, we took another train, this time to Irkutsk, Russia. From this outpost deep in Siberia we took our finally, four-day train to Moscow. And there, after have been away for close to fourteen months I caught a flight home.

I added two more travel updates. Click on the links below to access them.

The End Has No End Part I
The End Has No End Part II

I've been away for to 412 days (thirteen-and-a-half months or over a year), been to eight different countries (not including Hong Kong), seen al their capitals, and according to my own rough caluclations travelled over 14021 kilometers.

A lot of people ask me: what are you going to do now? Well, I like to tell them a little story before answering the question.

Ever seen that 1963 movie set in World War 2 about the Allied prisoners of war trying to escape from a German camp? It's a classic with actors like Steve McQueen, James Garner and Richard Attenborough (nowadays famous for his voice-overs in animal documentaries).

The best part is the character Virgil Hilts, an American officer played by Steve McQueen, who upon arrival in the camp immediately tries to escape. He gets caught pretty soon after his attempt and has to spent a fair amount of time in the cooler, the isolation cell. He is visibly distraught and at one point you question his sanity.

Every time Hilts is released he tries to escape. And every time he escapes he gets caught. And every time he gets caught he has to spend long, lonely days in the cooler. Hence his nickname: the Cooler King. During the big escape attempt (the Great Escape) he manages to get far away – one of the furthest actually, undoubtedly aided by his skills on a stolen motorcycle – but eventually he gets caught.

The movie ends with him being thrown in the same cooler again. You think he will cry and collapse, but he doesn't. He just sits down and smiles. And you know he's planning the next Great Escape.

Thank you for reading this Great Escape. I will be taking a small break, but don't despair. Keep an eye out. Before you know it you'll read about my next Great Escape.

Stephan Meijerhof