Walk for Italy


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A 1,700-KM TREK FROM THE ALPS TO SOUTHEASTERN ITALY ALONG THE VIA FRANCIGENA

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The Camino or the Francigena (part II)?

1 March 2010 – I never saw Karin again after the morning following our dinner together and we exchanged but one email many months later, yet I carried those of wisdom with me for almost 1,000 kilometers to Rome and then another 750 more kilometers to Otranto. I have also quoted Karin many times when somebody asks me which pilgrimage they should do.
    Every pilgrimage is indeed unique, but what I can add to Karin’s words of wisdom is that while the Camino and the Via Francigena both offer so much, they do it in quite different ways. The choice is going to depend on who you are and perhaps also in part on what your motivations are. If solitude is what you are looking for then the Francigena is for you. Solitude can be had on the Camino, but you have to work for it, you have to leave for your day’s walk either early or late if you want to ensure you will be alone and even then you are bound to pass, or be passed by, people. And forget about August if you want solitude. Conversely, on the Via Francigena you can walk for days, weeks really (even in August), without seeing another pilgrim.
    On the Camino everything is easy, it is well-marked and there are many many places to chose from for your lodging. The Via Francigena was very poorly marked when I walked it in 2007, with a few noteworthy exceptions including most of Tuscany. (Indications are that the signs on the Via Francigena have improved in the past two years though I can’t vouch for that.) Finding lodging outside of a hotel on the Via Francigena can be challenging and in some towns you won’t be able to find a roof to sleep under even if you are ready to pay.
    People who live and work along the Via Francigena are more hospitable and kind to pilgrims than those along the Camino, probably because on the Camino people see too many pilgrims to be able to give them personal attention. While a much higher percentage of the Camino is on dirt paths then the Francigena, it is the latter that will give you more a sense of adventure since your every step won’t be indicated by a yellow arrow. But for those who are really looking for an adventure that is a bit more off the beaten track there is the Southern Via Francigena, where there is nothing marked and nothing resembling an “official route.” For the pilgrim this is at first scary and then suddenly extraordinarily liberating. Kind of like Lucy finding herself in front of San Croce without her Baedekers.
    Whichever pilgrimage you do, I tell my friends who ask for my advice, the most important lesson can be learned on any one of them and that is the importance of humility. As you walk you might begin to feel smug that you have done xx (fill in the number here) kilometers that day or week or month and then you will find out that there is always somebody who has done more than you and under more difficult conditions.