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Via @ 70

Juli - Oktober 2023
  • Stuart Kilpatrick
Walking from Canterbury to Rome Weiterlesen
  • Stuart Kilpatrick

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  • Stuart KilpatrickReisenderVia @ 70

    Aosta 19 miles

    31. August 2023 in Italien ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C

    Spectacular day. Out before 9am after a poor, communal breakfast. Still cold but warmed up as soon as I got into the sun. Crossed over into Italy before the descent. Fabulous views. Best of the Via without a doubt. After the previous cloudy days it was clear skies when it really mattered. Big descent. Nearly 2,000m spread over 19 miles so quite hard on the feet but a small price to pay. Found a small supermarket who were happy to make me a sandwich for lunch. Bench nearby to sit on while eating. Fabulous.

    Passed a chap who appeared to spend his days keeping track of passing pilgrims. He had positioned himself at a point where all pilgrims were sure to pass him. Had an interesting record of those who had passed in June and July. Vast majority were Italians who, I suspect, would only have started at the Swiss border at the Col. He was seeing about 10 a day which surprised me as I have only met about 3 or 4 in the whole of France and Switzerland.

    Finally reached Aosta just before 5pm, after over 7 hours walking. What an amazing place. Chock full of tourists, shops, bars, restaurants and ice cream parlours. By far the most tourist-oriented place of the Via so far.

    Met Keith who is joining me for the next week. After the usual washing of me and my clothes it was out to check out the Roman ruins and have a pizza & beer followed by an ice cream for a fraction of the price in Switzerland. Love it.    Weiterlesen

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  • Stuart KilpatrickReisenderVia @ 70

    Saint-Vincent 20 miles

    1. September 2023 in Italien ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    Looking at the door to our apartment I was struck by how quickly the culture changes when you go between countries on the continent. Within the UK you cross a border between Scotland and England and it isn’t obvious looking about you. But going between France and Switzerland and, more recently, between Switzerland and Italy the changes are immediate and quite startling. Some examples. Going back to the door. This was an inside door to our apartment, from a stair serving 4 or 5 apartments which itself was secured by a locked door. And yet our door required a 5 point steel bar mechanism the like of which I have never seen before. The day before, in Switzerland, at the hostel, there were a couple of hundred folk staying with all their fancy gear lying about, not a locked door in the place. The corridor was littered with fancy phones, bike batteries, GPS units galore all spending the night being recharged.

    The traffic. In Switzerland anyone approaching near a zebra crossing brought all traffic, both ways, to a halt just in case you decided to cross the road. A couple of hours drive across the border in Italy and, if you are foolhardy, you can just about persuade drivers to stop if you throw yourself onto the crossing but I really wouldn’t advise it.

    And then we have the prices. In Switzerland they frequently have an odd rule about a minimum spend of 10SFr in order to pay by card. I say odd because it is almost impossible to buy anything that costs less than 10SFr. In Italy I bought 2 pastries and a sort of tart for our (healthy) breakfast for about 4€.
    Anyway, I digress.

    An interesting day’s walk. Weather was just about perfect. Temperature in mid twenties, blue skies, a cooling headwind enough to refresh but not chill. I had decided against the official route which tended to climb from the valley floor only to drop down after a while and then go back up again. And repeat. Scenic but knackering. Instead we took the cycle route which stayed on the valley floor, close to the river, mostly on a dedicated cycle path. Probably annoyed some cyclists. Quite hard on the feet walking 20 miles on road surfaces but much kinder on the legs. And it meant you were able to get some lunch. Had a piadina which is a sort of flat bread. Fine and very reasonably priced.

    Very fancy hotel although the double bed was split into twin beds faster than you would think possible. Dinner of charcuterie followed by risotto. Very good.

    Important discovery on ice creams. Apologies for those who are way ahead of me on this but it was new to me. You get far more ice cream for two scoops on a cone then in a carton. Impossible to eat without requiring a shower and change of clothes but worth it. Extensive experimentation will be done over the next 5 weeks believe me.    Weiterlesen

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  • Stuart KilpatrickReisenderVia @ 70

    Pont-Saint-Martin 18 miles

    2. September 2023 in Italien ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    In keeping with the posh hotel, breakfast was possibly the biggest spread of the trip. Certainly since Canterbury. We did our best.

    Another lovely day for walking. The route seemed to either go up or down in the morning. I do quite like level but it didn’t do much of that. Came upon an interesting water dispenser. For the princely sum of 7 cents the machine would dispense a litre of water, sparkling or still. Chilled even. Perfect for pilgrims. The only slight gripe is we have no idea when we might come upon such a machine. So we have to lug water around in case there aren’t any more machines.

    Had a similar lunch to yesterday. Very pleasant although no chocolate. I am trying my best to cope with reduced rations. One curious episode at lunch. I went to the loo as is my custom on these occasions. It appeared to be occupied at least I was unable to open the door. Time passed. The barman passed a few times as well. No action. Eventually the barman pressed a buzzer behind the bar that released the door and he indicated I could enter. I know places in the UK often have signs saying toilets are for customers only but this is taking things to a new level. And why didn’t he open the door when he saw me waiting. Was it a power thing? If he doesn’t like the look of someone does he just never open the door? It might have been nice to notify folk of the procedure by a note on the door rather than leaving them standing with crossed legs indefinitely. Not impressed.

    Passed an old tractor as we walked. Not an uncommon occurrence on this walk. Keith pointed out the manufacturer. Lamborghini. Keith says they also make motor cars and he found the combination of product lines quite interesting. I share this in case anyone else is equally enthralled.

    I didn’t have an ice cream for lunch as I reckoned having one half way through the afternoon would provide a welcome break and a wee boost to help the weary legs. A suitable place was identified and progress towards it was tracked during the afternoon. Unsurprisingly, Sod’s Law being what it is, there was none to be had despite the village being quite a tourist trap in every other way.

    Tonight’s accommodation was billed as a bed and breakfast. I had requested two private rooms for obvious reasons. Turned out that we were in a 2 bed apartment. One bedroom had a double bed and a camp bed. It was indicated that the camp bed should be used by one of us. The other bedroom has 4 bunk beds. Food was laid out for breakfast including possibly the largest dod of cheese I have ever seen. The only slight quirky thing, and isn’t there always some quirky thing, is that a lady is joining us for breakfast. She is sleeping in another apartment, presumably on the same stair and we are to keep our door unlocked so she can simply came in whenever she wants. Hope she isn’t an early riser and has a strong constitution. I believe I can look a little scary if woken early in the morning, i.e. any time before 9am.

    The only restaurant in town seemed to be some sort of New York pizza place. Didn’t tempt us so we picked up some bits and pieces at a local deli instead. Very nice and we even tried to make some inroads in the hundred pound block of cheese as well.    Weiterlesen

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  • Stuart KilpatrickReisenderVia @ 70

    Ivrea 14 miles

    3. September 2023 in Italien ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    Madam was early but not too early. I was grumpy but, I thought, not too grumpy. Just non-communicative I would describe it. Anyway she left. We had breakfast and left too.

    Lovely day’s walking again. Varied terrain. Plenty of churches to look at (or not). The route seemed to dive up the side of the valley to a church and then come back down again. Because it was a relatively short day this sort of thing was tolerated. The alternative of staying on the valley floor would have involved walking on a busy road for long periods.

    Luckily folk in Italy don’t usually acknowledge passers-by to the same extent as in France because we came upon some sort of sponsored walk which involved about 500 folk walking in the opposite direction to us on the same path. The thought of saying 500 “Buongiorno”s beggars belief.

    Stopped for lunch in a beer garden selling street food. Had meusa, a type of very flat corn bread, similar to an Indian dosa, filled with salami and Philly. Water rather than beer although the beer looked mighty tempting.
    Much the same walking in the afternoon just a bit hotter.

    The best we could do for much-needed ice cream was to call in to a large Lidl on the outskirts of Ivrea. Slight danger that we might have had to buy a packet of 6 ice creams but did eventually manage to get individual own-brand Cornettos. Cold and refreshing and as good as their 79cent price tag would suggest.

    Tonight we are in the Ivrea Canoe Club hostel. Bit of an institution in the pilgrim world. Great view of the canoe folk from our window during the day but at night it sounds like you are “sleeping” right beside Niagara Falls.

    Dinner in a nearby restaurant was fabulous. Seafood spaghetti with profiteroles to follow. If Italy continues as it has started I am going to come back very chubby indeed, walking or no walking.    Weiterlesen

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  • Stuart KilpatrickReisenderVia @ 70

    Santhia 23 miles

    4. September 2023 in Italien ⋅ 🌙 23 °C

    Early start as this is one of the longest days of the whole walk. It seemed there was only 3 of us in the hostel, which can probably accommodate dozens. We raided the “help yourself” stores for a banana. There had been two but our lady friend from before left before 7am and grabbed the other one. That kept us going until we hit a cafe for a cappuccino and croissant (filled with raspberry jam). Very nice and only about 6€ for both of us.

    Yesterday we left the Alps and so the terrain is much flatter. I think by tomorrow it is completely flat but today’s hills were very gentle. The work today was all about distance covered, mostly on tarmac, and the heat. Suspect it is back up about 30C.

    Had to go a little off route to get somewhere for lunch. A wee bar serving toasted focaccia filled with ham and cheese and bottled water. Again great value and just what was needed.

    Tonight we are in a BnB. As usual you have no idea in advance what to expect. I had tried to book single rooms but by the time we arrived we were so knackered we would have accepted (almost) anything. Initial signs weren’t great. A block of flats. Pressed the buzzer and the lady unlocked the door and said she was on the 4th floor. She waited until we had almost reached her, took about 10 minutes, and then asked why we hadn’t taken the lift. Turned out that she had 2 one bedroom apartments for us so we didn’t just have our own room but our own apartment. Very comfortable.

    I asked for a restaurant suggestion to which she said words to the effect of “not on a Monday”. She then decided one might be open and she would phone to check. Came back to say that it was shut except for hotel guests but she had negotiated to allow us to eat on the basis that we were pilgrims staying with her. Ended up very confusing and we had far too much food, although it tasted fine and was reasonably priced.    Weiterlesen

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  • Stuart KilpatrickReisenderVia @ 70

    Vercelli 17 miles

    5. September 2023 in Italien ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    Diy breakfast as in our host dropped off a couple of croissants in my apartment before I got up and we had them and coffee, orange juice etc. Headed out of town which was a lot livelier at 9am on a Tuesday than it had been on a Monday early evening. It seems Italy really doesn’t do Mondays very much at all.

    Got to thinking about birds today. Started when we stopped in the only potential feeding station of the day. Had a cheese and ham toastie and juice and then went to the loo as is my want. Standing there when my eye was drawn to a Pirelli style pin-up of a young lady. How very sexiest I thought until I noticed that, for the ladies, who I believe invariably sit on these occasions, on the opposite wall and at a suitably reduced height was a poster of a rather scantily clad gentleman who allegedly works as a fireman. That’s all right then.

    Later on while wandering endlessly through rice field after rice field I noticed the other type of birds. The ones that fly. Got to wondering how they work out flying together. Firstly you have the geese flying south for winter. How do they decide who is going to lead? Do they take votes? Does it go to the oldest? Or is it like our royal family? The leader hands the leadership down to one of his bairns. Is there a crown or a fancy feather? And do they bicker over who is going to fly next to the head burd. Lords and ladies etc.

    Then we have the ones I saw today where you have half a dozen taking off together. Is there a Biggles in charge who makes the decision to take-off? How does he or she communicate with the others? Or does he/she simply start engines as it were and the rest go “help ma bob, we’re off” and make chase? I could go on (and on) but you get my drift. The mind wanders a little when the feet are just plodding left, right, repeat. This was a little like the flat lands of France but with a lot more farms, roads, railways etc.

    Walking with someone is very different to walking alone. You can’t really bang in Desert Island Discs. Bit anti-social even by my standards. But being male, talk is not continuous. There are big chunks of silence. Not a concept that I would expect females to really understand or am I being sexist now?

    Tonight’s hostel is, I think, the first I have come across being run by pilgrims for pilgrims. The couple in charge are looking after it for a week and then someone else takes over. They prepared an evening meal and will also do breakfast. At 7am unbelievably. Why? Anyway dinner was lovely. Veggie which made a pleasant change from most of the food so far. And as a real treat for everyone I made use of the washing machine & tumble dryer. My walking t-shirt and shorts have been worn every day for the last 8 weeks or so and I thought at was maybe about time they got something more than my effort at hand-washing. Slight concern that the dryer will reduce them to unwearable as that would mean the clothes I am currently wearing (you will be pleased to learn) are the only things I could wear. Bit limited.    Weiterlesen

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  • Stuart KilpatrickReisenderVia @ 70

    Mortara 21 miles

    6. September 2023 in Italien ⋅ 🌙 20 °C

    Well I managed the 7am breakfast. Just about. And only by having lights out at about 9pm. I do like the best part of 10 hours kip while doing this walking caper. Not sure if it’s because with 4 gents in a bedroom, which is a bit hot and stuffy anyway, sleep is possibly not as deep as at home and so you need longer to get the same recovery. It’s a good excuse.

    Anyway we were on our way at the back of 8am. Useful having an early start as another hot day was in prospect.

    Most of it was spent wandering along between rice fields and irrigation channels. Not the most exciting or interesting walking but a lot easier than the Alps that were now only visible in the far distance.

    Lunch was another ham and cheese toastie - not very photogenic. And lots of liquid. Sneaked in a welcome Magnum and a litre and a half of sparkling water during the afternoon. Loving the extra opportunity of refreshments compared to the French part of the Via even if there is the tendency to over-indulge - always a failing of mine.

    Staying tonight at a nice hotel with a very nice restaurant - bit fortunate as it was chosen for its value for money and proximity to the train station.

    Nipped out for a drink before dinner. Bit strange. Requested a couple of beers. The lad started pouring the first. Tap went off half half way through so we chose a different beer. He poured most of one beer and half of the other and that tap went off as well. After pottering about he just gave us the two glasses and said no charge. What a civilised country. Free beer.

    Another early breakfast planned for tomorrow in view of Keith’s departure by train for Milan airport. Will be strange going back to solo walking for the rest of the Via, just me and Desert Island Discs. Unless I pick up a couple of Italian girls like my last Via, of course.    Weiterlesen

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  • Stuart KilpatrickReisenderVia @ 70

    Garlasco 13 miles

    7. September 2023 in Italien ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    Had usable air-con last night which was a real pleasure. Often I find it just too noisy to be worth it but last night was fine. Early breakfast as Keith had his train to catch. Surprisingly average breakfast as the hotel’s dinner had been pretty good.

    Chilled out for a bit before departing partly because it was a fairly short day and I didn’t think I would get into the next place very early.

    The downside of leaving late was it was already uncomfortably hot by the time I was walking. Seemed odd initially to be on my own again but I got into the swing of it with the help of the radio. The terrain helped too with almost a French feel to the long path between large fields. I confess I only feel like a real pilgrim when I am on my own. When I am with someone it feels more like being on a walking holiday. Somehow solitude feels necessary. Better stay clear of all those Italian girls this time round then.

    Nipped into a church for a break this morning. They do provide a relatively cool, shady seat and it feels like the appropriate pilgrim thing to do. Had a half hour blether to Anne while I was in there.

    At lunchtime, rather than getting a sandwich/toastie plus water in a bar that Keith and I usually did I went for the supermarket fruit, crisps and large bottle of juice instead. Ended up sitting on the ground in the car park with it. I had been quite happy doing this in France but it now seemed less satisfactory than the bar. It isn’t the food or drink that’s the problem you just feel more recovered after sitting on a proper chair with a table in a (hopefully) cool bar for a half an hour rather than sitting on concrete outside. Lesson learned.

    Rolled up to the hotel at the back of 3pm only to find it was derelict. Bit disconcerting as Booking.com had taken my money some days ago. Strange. Took a further look round the back and found that it was just the main building that was no more. Some enterprising soul was using the newer, motel type units round the back and running a sort of BnB enterprise with the same name as the defunct hotel. Happy with that especially as they had air conditioning. The chap recommended a pizzeria, unfortunately over half a mile away, but as it had been a short day it seemed churlish not to take his suggestion. When ordering, from an English menu, you could choose between regular, thin or thick pizza. I was tempted to go for the thin one as I hoped it would be smaller but I was told in time it was much larger. Don’t understand but possibly it was a lost in translation thing. Rustica for those interested. Very nice too.

    And the local gelateria had to be sampled on the way back.    Weiterlesen

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  • Stuart KilpatrickReisenderVia @ 70

    Pavia 15 miles

    8. September 2023 in Italien ⋅ 🌙 24 °C

    Was told last night that breakfast was at 7am because other pilgrims had requested that. Bit odd as breakfast is just a cold buffet. Essentially croissant or bread, some meat and cheese (sometimes), yogurt, maybe some fruit, and coffee. Anyway, after what seems like a lifetime of training, I did as I was told. No sign of the other pilgrims. No matter, it got me going before the day got unpleasant. Not sure if I’ve mentioned the heat but it is still over 30C every day even after 7pm. Apart from a couple of days going over the col I feel it has been too hot for weeks now.

    Mostly obvious paths or on road but did have the occasional “try and find the path” moment. Nothing too tricky. What was difficult was finding somewhere to have a seat in the shade for a bite to eat and a rest. Just nothing so I ploughed on and completed the 15 mile day in one go. Did mean I arrived in Pavia for a 1pm lunch prior to checking in at 2pm. Rested up for a couple of hours which meant it was very slightly cooler for having a look at Pavia. Nice covered bridge (recent reconstruction of a 1354 one which itself was a reconstruction of a Roman one). And a couple of churches. Service taking place in one with about 10 attendees at most. Struck by how similar it seemed to my ignorant eye compared to the Church of England one back in Canterbury. Apart from the lack of singing.

    Dinner tonight was at a recommended restaurant nearby where my hostess had arranged a 12€ pilgrim’s menu for her guests. All very well but it meant that instead of a menu which I could take my time over translating the waiter just reeled off some choices and I could pick. At random because my Italian is non-existent. Ended up with spicy pasta followed by fried fish and salad, and then tiramisu. Could have been a lot worse.    Weiterlesen

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  • Stuart KilpatrickReisenderVia @ 70

    Santa Cristina e Bissone 18 miles

    9. September 2023 in Italien ⋅ 🌙 26 °C

    One of those days when the hostess puts out some bits and pieces the night before in your room for your breakfast and you help yourself before you leave. Sometimes it is good, sometimes not so much. Today was a little light but boosted by a half melon which I have been carrying around for the last day and a half. Really needed to eat or ditch as it weighed 700gms.

    Left by 8am and Pavia was still very quiet for my walk out.

    Some of you may have noticed my “fondness” for dogs. I come across many of them on the walk and I have noticed a difference between country dogs and town dogs. Town dogs are just about ok. It isn’t really the dog so much as their owners. They keep the hounds in the garden roaming free to terrorise passers-by but crucially from behind a solid fence. So apart from irritating loud barking I am safe. But out in the country they are often allowed to roam free. Just waiting for the next pilgrim. Highlight of their day I suspect. While I don’t mind being a highlight I would rather I wasn’t a mutt's highlight.

    Although today was longer than yesterday it ended up being a bit easier. Occasional shade, less traffic, several rest stops and a slight wind all helped.
    Churches are proving wonderful rest stops. Unlike bars, cafes and restaurants they are invariably open. Limited menus admittedly.

    I have noticed while looking back at previous photos that each church looks very like every previous one. Some are bigger than others certainly but there is a definite theme going on. I might just sneak a photo of a previous one in some time just to see if anyone spots it. You have been warned.

    Wondered this morning whether it was ok to use them as somewhere to sit while I put my sun tan lotion on. No one else there to ask.

    In a hostel tonight so I think it will be hot. No air-conditioning or even a fan. The guy running it thoughtfully put us three pilgrims in different rooms but I came back from dinner to find that 3 more had arrived and had all joined me. Fab. Just what I need.

    Italians, so almost certainly they are just doing a wee section of the route.
    No choice for dinner. Just one pizzeria in town. It was fine but already getting a little repetitious.    Weiterlesen

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