Ciao a tutti !
May the road rise up
to meet you
May the wind be
always at your back
May the sun shine
warm upon your face
The rains fall soft
upon your fields
May God hold you safe in
the palm of His hand.
So, Compagno Pellegrino, just a week or so before it will be time for Boots on the Ground out in Italy.
By way of reminder, 2019 is the Golden Anniversary of The Italian Job being released back in 1969.
And what better by
way of celebration than The Italian Job Secondo?
The idea is simply told:
The 3Rs Walk:
Rambling with Ric to Rome
The What
·
We stroll along from Florence to
Assisi and then on to Rome.
· Some 330
miles over 28 days, about 12 miles per day
·
OK, we do climb (& descend) 57,000
feet!
The Way … of St Francis
· The Way of St Francis, also known as the Camino di Francesco, is a
walking trail inspired by the life of St Francis of Assisi, who lived around 800 years ago.
· The Way takes an ancient Roman road from Florence to Assisi and on to Rome, following in
the steps of St Francis through stunning villages:
Gubbio
And across peaceful countryside:
The When
- From: Wednesday 25th
September
- To: Friday 25th October 2019
Of course, there will be 6 Rest & Half-Rest Days; Never
In Doubt!
At the end there will be time to wander round Rome on Saturday 26th October 2019 for The Seven Pilgrim Churches Walk.
And on Sunday 27th at Noon to visit St Peter’s
Square, hopefully to hear The Angelus, the Pope’s weekly blessing.
Journey's end: St Peter's Square, Rome
As for The Who …
I’ll come back in a couple of moments to just Who is ‘involved’.
The Logistics Director and I fly out to Pisa on Monday 23
September.
We head straight to Lucca.
Where there will be time to walk the tree-lined pathways along the tops of the 16th
and 17th century ramparts.
And time too for the first Double Scoop of the trip.
Best ice cream in Lucca !!
And then
it is on to Florence.
Time to
get the first stamp in the Credenziale (" Pilgrim's Passport "). Gathering more stamps along the way, in Rome the
Credenziale allows you to receive the Testimonum, the
certification of a pilgrimage.
One night
in Florence, then it definitely is time for Boots
on the Ground.
15 days of walking to Assisi and then 13 days more to Rome.
The
training over the winter and through this year has gone OK.
Plenty of
Miles in the Legs; though perhaps I
could have done with a few more longer, hillier walks.
Thanks to
Chris who walked the North Downs Way with me, to Jeff for the London Capital
Ring and to
Barry for the Kent River Walks.
Chris, Jeff & Barry at The Tiger Inn, Stowting
And to Pilgrim Mylo - with a commendable Paws on the Ground of over 500 miles !
I'm a Good Boy, Dad
It is a
massive privilege to be able to spend a full month with friends in the open air, with Italian sunshine, wonderful views and experiences, old and new.
Time during the walk, of
course, to reflect.
For, as
Alissa Timoshkina wrote in Salt & Time Recipes
From a Russian Kitchen:
“We often need Distance and Time
Both to see things better
And to feel closer to them.”
And to spend time with others … The Who.
Firstly, my thanks to my Support Team.
Especially to my Logistics Director, Dianne, who has organised the
travel and accommodation.
To the Reverend Susan, who calculates all the statistics of kilometres
walked and height climbed.
To my Producer, Nicole, with whom I will be collaborating on the End of Walk video.
To the Pilgrims who will be joining me out in Italy.
To those who walked
with me on the Camino in Spain back in 2017:
Barry, Kate + Nigel, Jackie +
Jeff, Graham, Sarah + Chris and Mel + Phil.
And to those on their
first pilgrimage:
Roger and Andy + Karen.
Winter Planning with The Lads: Harry, Roger, Martin & Nigel
And to those I hope to meet along The Way …
And to all of you from the UK and around the world who follow the daily blogs on:
RamblingWith Ric.blogspot.com
Do keep in contact
whilst I’m away.
A MASSIVE thank you to you all!
---
So, I’m pretty much ready to go.
The Kit List is commendably short.
I like to follow the advice Douglas Adams gave in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy:
What should a
hitchhiker carry at all times?
A Towel.
This is because
anyone meeting a hitchhiker in possession of a towel will naturally assume he
also has a toothbrush, face flannel, soap, tin of biscuits, flask, compass,
map, ball of string, gnat spray, wet weather gear and space suit.
Any man who can hitch
the length and breadth of the galaxy, rough it, slum it, struggle against
terrible odds, win through and still know where his towel is, is clearly a man
to be reckoned with”.
And I do have a new pair of Laces; I've gone Orange this time!
As Day 1 gets ever nearer - perhaps understandably - I am feeling a little apprehensive …
Will I be able to
keep to the Plan?
Well, it was Rebecca Solnit who cracked it:
“We start with a
step,
Then another, and
another one,
That like slight
blows on a drum, forms a pattern.
The Rhythm of
Walking.”
So,
May God hold you safe in the palm of His
hand.
See you soon!!
Ciao, Ricardo
PS
I know, dear reader, you’re wondering about whether I really will be
following in the footsteps of St Francis.
History records many things about St Francis.
Of course, there is his Optimism:
A single sunbeam is enough
to drive away many shadows.
But perhaps the most famous is that on his pilgrimages each day St
Francis always, but always had a freshly washed and ironed shirt.
Yes: the Ironing Board and Iron will both be coming along with me!!
