A meandering path

Day 21 on the Via di Francesco.

This was a day when I woke up after a disturbed night. Maybe it’s the Italian culture of eating a substantial meal quite late who knows. At 5.00am I got up and decided to creep out and pray as the sun was rising. It did not disappoint.

I read the familiar words from Morning Prayer.

In the tender compassion of our God,
The dawn from on high shall break upon us.
To shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,
And to guide our feet into the way of peace.

We were given a short benediction as we set off. This was a visually beautiful walk. Sometimes up and down, then twisting and turning to follow the contours of the hills as we walked around the side of this large lake filling the valley below.

It’s intersting that a sublime time of prayer and thankfulness doesn’t always last very long. As the heat of the sun increased so did my weariness. If it had been a direct route across the lake it wouldn’t have been very far but the continal twists and turns felt like I was never going to reach my destination. The beauty of the views and the flowers were there but didn’t bring refreshment. This was one of those days when the knowledge that this was the penultimate day of the walk made a difference to my mood.

I did eventually of course arrive at Valfabricca which was my stop for the night. It was very much a small town which had decided they were going to be a pilgrim town. The wallpainting at the entrance to the town hinted at that. I loved the style.

I found my hostel, had a quick beer and a shower then had a rest. I had a dormitory room all to myself which was nice. Later that evening I walked around a bit and ended up having another beer and chatting to a couple of pilgrims I had met yesterday.

Tomorrow was my last day of walking. I planned to arrive in Assisi as soon as possible. No matter how awesome this wak had been I was ready for it to end.