No-one was opening for coffee before 6.30 tomorrow so I asked the owner of a cafe if he could open at 6.00 and there he was with his freshly baked croissants at 5.45. We started out on a large highway and Sabine now has the book and navigated well - no getting lost. Out once again amongst the bare fields and tomatoes to the horizon past large farm houses and tractors, a few trees and [...]
And what a mystery it was. We met in the piazza at 6.00 am with a bar well into the day’s work and then we left under the light of the street lamps and out onto a busy highway. Our French friends had Monica’s guide book and we had Babette’s and while sometimes they agreed, today they didn’t. And I think the 4 of us were more interested in getting to know each other that [...]
We climbed down from our bell tower to begin a new day with our vibrant and entertaining new French friends. We walked along highways again, some fields, this time heavy with acres of Roma tomatoes, through lively working villages, many bars for coffee, croissants and alcohol. At one stage we had to cross Italy’s longest rivers, the Po - it was with our speedboat driver Giovanni who took us on a glorious 5km trip downriver. [...]
We ate pasta with Sabine and Bertrand from the south of France, and had a wonderful time with these avid walkers. So easy to be with, and with enough English to communicate with us, two very funny people. Our night in another well-equipped church property was luxurious - we made good use of our own room and its highly efficient a/c. With 5 men in the room across the hall, and no snorers, it was [...]
With our ineffective a/c still chugging out warm air, I collected the breakfast they had left for us - fruit, fruit juice, cakes and biscuits - and ate on our new a/c balcony down the other end because it was still cooler than our room and had table and chairs that now looked sort of like an eating place. So quite a pleasant stay! A short walk today, because of the long distance between sleeps. [...]
After superb pasta next door, Angela invited us to chat with her, her husband and a young pharmacist in the courtyard near the peach tree under the lights of the sky - it was delightful. The next morning she hovered around quietly and curiously as we ate her delicately prepared breakfast. Two peaches from the peach tree were ‘for our camino’ as she kissed and hugged us on our way. The walk took us along [...]
Quietly we crept out and down flights of stairs - gate would not open but luckily someone starts work the same time as us and bonjourno’d to us from another gate - phew! The early opener was open and occupied by the older men - we, as they do, sit in the coolness of the street having our usual coffee, chocolate and the first croissants of the day - as good as anywhere. We paid [...]
Breakfast in the plaza of a little village at 5.30 was a gorgeous start to our day. The locals were all there, drinking coffee, talking - in the cool of the early morning. We continued on similar terrain - flat - through grain fields fed by 2-6 metre wide canals, a system started, I believe, by the ancient Romans. Visually the canals have a cooling effect, while every now and then when the water flows [...]
Corrie's failed interview in the Tromello nursing home. She's still with me! Our alternate route ---- Get over it, Corrie! When we got lost, this is the bridge we built to get over it. It’s really hot (6am - 9am is pleasant)— for some reason I didn’t expect that so it has slowed us down a little and gives me a chance to rest my partly cartilage free foot and bursitis [...]
Leaving Vercelli in the rain. Great. It was later than I expected to get going, 6.20. I felt a little tired but thought that was normal. We showered, Corrie asked for her watch back (I’m the time keeper - anal - so I’m usually good at it). Unperturbed, Corrie asked why we were leaving at 11.50pm - I had the watch on upside down!!! We slipped out of the very old town of [...]
