12th May 2015 – Medesano to Sivizzano (248m)
16.9km
Fine warm weather again
Short version:
Much better day with good walk to Sivizzano, through woods along a river, into the town of Fornovo on market day! Finally, after walking along roads without footpaths, arrived in the haven of the hostel in Sivizzano with the wonderful Enrica & who was there waiting for me but Charles who had had a problem with his leg. Delicious simple meal in the only trattoria in the village. An early night. All is well.
Longer version:
I think I heard Charles get up but he had inspired me so I put the alarm on for 7 but awoke at 6 anyway (just as the bells were about to strike again) & got up & on opening the shutters I saw the sunrise!
When I went into the bathroom I found a lovely note from Charles written on toilet paper. As I had to decide which foot protection option I would use it took me a little time to get away.
Went to the local bar which was open & had a breakfast with real bread and proper cheese, as opposed to the plastic sort, and even an orange which the girl didn’t charge me for! I set out for a walk of 17km but stopped after 4 at the first town (opposite a tomato canning factory), Felegara, at a bar with gorgeous climbing roses outside for a cappuch & the woman (after hearing my accent!) told me she’d been in England 25 years ago & had forgotten her English but she now has a BBC TV channel and can understand the news! Every time there is any conversation everyone in the bar joins in – what an important social role bars play. Walking on further I came across a very prosperous-looking Parmesan cheese factory.
Then I went into the woods along a river and was surprised by all the flowers I saw there – yellow Broom everywhere, many others. At one point I turned a corner and there before me was a stage set as the ground and all the vegetation was covered by white “fluff”, like white smoke, which was perhaps from the acacia trees and which rose well above the ground.
Quite magical to see! Further on downstream I walked along the side of a gravel business which went on for at least 500 metres if not more! At the end were the modern offices but also some accommodation for, perhaps, foreign workers.
By this time I was arriving in Fornovo di Taro and had to walk over a 500m-long bridge over the river as the town is situated at the junction of three valleys. There was a Via Francigena sign at the start with two arrows, one to Canterbury and one to Rome.
And it was market day, in every available piazza, and Fornovo’s name in fact derives from ‘Forum Novum’ (market place). Fantastic! There were even lots of live birds for sale – chicken, ducks, other birds. I bought some grilled vegetables, fruit, a carrot and a tomato! Walked to the centre of town and sat down in a cafe for a tea and had the best tea since I’ve been in Italy, beautifully served in a ceramic cup and pot on a big ceramic saucer. And it was Darjeeling (Margaret’s Hope, only second flush but what can you expect for 2 Euros) from Le Palais des Thes in Paris which I know. I asked a man whether the road here was the main road out of town but, guess what, he “wasn’t from here”! However he asked was I only “walking” or was I also interested in seeing the “monuments”? I said it was the trip and not the destination which was important so he told me a few things to look out for.
I walked on to Respiccio, still on a tarmac road without footpaths, and then saw a cemetery off the road, these are often very ugly affairs, but with a stone seat outside! So I sat there and took off my shoes to cool my feet & air my socks, in the shade and breeze and listened to a cuckoo singing to its heart’s content. I checked on the taping on my 1 & 1/2 good heels, but I think my taping technique needs some refinement…so will revert for the moment to my Compeed stick. I think I’m going to have to look for lighter socks when I get to the next sizeable town as I have heat rash on my legs (although have now opened the vertical zips of the air-vents which I discovered in the legs of my trousers and they make a difference)! However, I have decided to stop obsessing on my feet and just let them be and go with the flow – I certainly have enough “options” in my travelling chemist shop to affront what happens!
Finally arrived in Sivizzano which is a long straggling village beside the road (for 2 km) and then found the hostel. I was not looking forward to it as it was described as a hall with two beds and lots of mattresses and a shower…but in fact it was in what was left of a Benedictine cloister attached to the church and the “hall” was a beautiful long stone-vaulted room and the guardian was the wonderful Enrica.
As she opened the gate for me she said I’d have to reserve in the trattoria for dinner and that there was another pilgrim, which turned out to be Charles whose leg problem had become worse, so I gave him more antibiotic cream from my pharmacy. I was pleased to see him again and he said he had already reserved for us for dinner!
Enrica gave us advice about the road ahead, and possible accommodation, and stamped our pilgrim passports. She was so busy talking to us that when her 93 year old mother came down from their upstairs apartment she realized it was already past 16h00 and she hadn’t open up the church for people coming to say the rosary!
Charles & I went to the trattoria (when reserving he had asked if we could eat outside, he thought under the tree opposite the little restaurant but there were now men playing cards there) but the owner had set up one table in the summer area (which had not yet been prepared for summer) under beautiful big trees with views to the hills beyond. We had a very simple but delicious meal (no choice) of fresh pasta with mushrooms followed by lemon scalopinni and fried potatoes. The bells were supposed to ring at 20h00 but didn’t (Enrica said a technician had just been for an annual “greasing” but they were quite irregular in ringing). But they did at 6h00 the next morning!
Charles says his favourite expression in English is
Yesterday is history, tomorrow is mystery, today is a gift and that’s why it’s called “present” which I’d never heard before.
We turned the lights out early as he was getting up at 5am to set off again for a long walk, hopefully with a better leg…
Just thought that a couple of friends have said that they could never go on such a pilgrimage without books (even in electronic format) but I have so far had no time at all to read except the guide book. I also brought along several cryptic crosswords cut out of my FTs which I hadn’t had time to do & haven’t even looked at them.
As well, there’s a change of attitude as anyone I encounter now who asks if I’m alone just says “what courage” and not any reference about being careful…
Highlights:
– first sunrise on the Via
– seeing my pilgrim friend Charles again
– Enrica’s warm hospitality
– a wonderful cup of tea
– beautiful flowers everywhere
Wise words on the pilgrimage… as well as those which I liked of Charles’s grandmother who used to say
“L’experience est un manteau qui ne s’use que sur ses propres epaules” which roughly translated means “experience is a coat which can only get worn out by your wearing it” (better translation would be appreciated please by you bi-lingual readers).