The final chapter.

I've always been one for conclusions. A good siccum to wrap things up, try link it all together. A way to say goodbye. Yet there isn't always a way to tie things up in the end. If anything it would be too much pressure to try figure one out, and then write it down, and then hope it sounds good.

I mean, I didn't find the meaning of life. And i still don't know why the righteous suffer, where babies come from, or any other answers to the great myths of life. It was just travel, and for most part it was more fun than anything.

So in the lack of there being something of great substance to offer, I'm going to jot down a few points. Things that I think make sense. My endings, if anything. I have eleven of them, and they are in point form. Like some of the best conclusions. So here we go:

1. Life always survives. I've seen trees growing from the sides of cliff faces, and I've seen a man with no arms carry a 50kg bag of cement through 200m of ocean, just to earn money, to eat. Life is hellbent on living. It will always find a way, or it will die trying.
2. The best beans and rice in East Africa is at a place called the Dar Express Cafe in Moshi, Tanzania. They also sell bus tickets there. Some to Dar Es Salaam. Seriously good rice and beans. 
3. Always have access to Eddie Vedder's music.
4. Always have access to peanut butter. I suggest carry some around with you. You can eat a lot of peanut butter before you get tired of it.
5. Deuters Rucksacks make a seriously fine backpack. They may have gotten some things wrong in the past, but man do those Germans know how to make a good bag. A solid bag is an important thing. It holds everything together. Just ask the turtles. Where do you keep your stuff? I now buy Deuters. 
6. Don't start with post cards or the postage system at all. Its all way too complex to figure and to make work.
7. Its better to be alone at your own pace, than with others at a pace that doesn't fit. But its also better to be with others at the wrong pace, than to be alone and feel alone. Its the complexity of life. 
8. There is nothing more certain in life than a flight.
9. When going somewhere you can't imagine. No matter what your original thoughts of the place were, it will always be different.
10. Life is what happens when you're waiting for the bus to fill up.
11. Everything works out well in the end. If it hasn't worked out, then its obviously not yet the end.

Thank you so much to everyone who read any of the pieces that I wrote while traveling. Its kind of a weird thing keeping a blog about your life and what you're doing. Its a little self focused. But the truth is, that keeping this blog, and having people read it, became a big part of my trip. It many ways, it made my trip. For one, I now realize I love writing. So thank you. If you ever start a blog, I will try read yours too.

My trip was 5 months, I went to eleven countries (or more, depending on your definition). I saw some beautiful things, met some incredible and unforgettable people, and had a pretty amazing time. And now I'm back in Cape Town. The road ahead is hopefully long and certainly unknown.

Life is a pretty good story.

Cheers for now,
Eitan