SHILLONG: The nature, open skies, the rugged mountains, the distinct and manifold cultures found all over the world would beckon a restless soul and the travel bug bit Meigo Mark who decided to leave his hometown in Estonia to travel the world on foot albeit as a lone traveler.
Addressing reporters on Tuesday after arriving here from Guwahati, Mark said, “I have been on a world tour with no means of transportation except walking. I started from Estonia, went on to 10 other countries – Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Serbia, Bulgaria and Greece and from there I entered Turkey where I walked for three months and covered 1600 kms and thence to Iran.”
“Sadly to say I did not enter Pakistan as some areas were not safe. From Iran I took a flight to Mumbai and then to New Delhi where I walked a distance of 1500 kms. Then I entered south Nepal and traveled more than 1000 kms and then entered India again and went to West Bengal, Darjeeling and Guwahati and then Shillong,” he added.
It took him three days to travel to Shillong from Guwahati. He revealed that while at Umiam Lake, he had completed a distance of 9000 kms since leaving home.
Following his arrival in Shillong, he was invited to speak at the assembly of Pine Mount School where he delivered some inspiring words to the students to face challenges in life.
“I met the Shillong Chamber Choir and the members interacted with me. We shared a lot of interesting stories with one another,” he added.
Speaking about Neil Nongkynrih, Choir master of SCC, Mark said, “He was very open with me.”
Mark, a musician by trade, left the comfort of his home at the age of 24 on May 11, 2014. In the 2 years and 2 weeks since he started his journey, he has followed the routine of walking in the day and retiring by sunset. He sleeps in a tent that he carries along with him and takes short rests in between walking.
His love for travelling attracted him to take up walking around the world.
“Every village and every city is different and I have stayed in many homes; some were of rich people while sometimes I have slept in slums and bamboo huts. Such varied activities make me rich as a traveler,” he recounted.
Recounting the challenges faced by him he said he has to counter inner and outer challenges and cited instances where he had to struggle under the sweltering heat and freezing cold weather.
His aim is to travel to 40-45 countries and cover a minimum distance of 40,000 kms.
