Since COVID-19 halted progress in March last year, we have hardly heard from Salopek. He has stayed in Myanmar and briefly headed to Putao, the northernmost town of Kachin state to visit the hometown of his walking partner Ja Pha "Jay" Se, but has otherwise been stuck in Yangon.

Now, Myanmar is suffering from a very different crisis. On February 1, the military seized control of the country, imprisoning democratically elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other politicians.

Salopek is yet to comment on the situation in Yangon but has released a couple of videos showing protests in the city.