Category: Cultural

Michael and Anna starting the Via Francigena on Pilgrims Way

Via Francigena: The Beginning

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The Via Francigena is an ancient road and pilgrimage route from the English cathedral city of Canterbury to Rome, Italy’s Eternal City. The 2,000-kilometre way was first documented by Sigeric the Serious, Archbishop of Canterbury. In 990 AD he travelled to Rome and back for his consecration using a network of Roman roads originally constructed to facilitate trade and conquest. 

Just as Sigeric did, we start our journey at Canterbury Cathedral. In the hush of early evening, we stand with Canon Emma Pennington by the eternal candle that marks where Thomas Becket’s body once lay. She prays that on the hard days on the Via Francigena we find the perseverance and strength to continue and on the days that the sun shines and the birds sing we open our hearts to the world and know its beauty.

The towers of Canterbury Cathedral glow in the late afternoon sun against a deep blue sky
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Michael and a Huli wigman pose for the camera

Papua New Guinea: a postcard from the lost world

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Our first overseas journey, to Papua New Guinea, remains one of our most adventurous. While not the hardest physically, nowhere else have we ventured so far off the beaten track, days away from any means of communication with the outside world and deep into a realm so unknown to us. 

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Camino Mozarabe

In our Hearts

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In our Hearts is Anna’s successful entry in the 2021 competition, 100 Caminos 100 Stories.

In 2020, in the middle of the pandemic, the Chilean Friends of the Camino established a 100-word story competition to keep the spirit of the Camino alive and to lift the spirits of walkers around the globe. Anna’s entry Josef and the Silver Way was highly commended.

The competition was so successful that the Friends decided to run it again. Anna’s In our Hearts was selected for publication from the more than 600 entries received. 

In our hearts tells the story of an enduring friendship made on the Camino Mozarabe.

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Brighly coloured glass-mosaic lamps hang in an Istanbul shop

Istanbul: a postcard from the lost world

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Istanbul is a dazzling, beguiling city. Once the capital of the Byzantine and Ottoman Empires, its epic history was shaped by a myriad of cultures including Arabic, Armenian, Greek, Bulgarian, Jewish and Kurdish. Its waterways are mythic; the Golden Horn, the Bosphorus, the Sea of Marmara. Shimmering domes, minarets and medieval towers rise from its seven hills.

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A view over the multicoloured houses of Manarola

Cinque Terre: a postcard from the lost world

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It’s our first spring in 18 months and we can’t get enough of the Cinque Terre; its vividly coloured villages, sparkling beaches, warm Italian sun and hillsides splashed with red poppies, purple orchids and white narcissus.

Centuries ago, the steep hills of the Cinque Terre were terraced with dry-stone walls and planted with vines. The inhabitants of its five villages farmed the land, fished the seas and made wine. But poverty, war and the lure of the city led to the abandonment of many of the hillside plots. The stabilising stone walls fell into disrepair and devastating landslides became more common. In response, the Cinque Terre National Park was created to restore and protect the natural and cultural heritage of this achingly beautiful coastal area. 

We plan to walk for four days; two days on the Cinque Terre’s high route (the Sentiero Rosso), one day on the coastal route, and one day further north, in the wilder Portofino Natural Park. 

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Evening, looking out across a softly lit Mehrangarh Fort to Jodhpur

Jodhpur: a postcard from the lost world

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On our way to the blue city of Jodhpur, we share the road with buffalo-drawn wooden ploughs, red-turbaned shepherds, men riding rickety bicycles piled high with building materials and flag-carrying pilgrims on their way to a holy site in the western desert. The dusty air is heady with incense on a day shot through with the silky colours of Rajasthan; reds, pinks, orange and saffron. 

We stop at a Jain temple high up in the mountains and wander its intricately carved marble interior, mesmerised by its icons and calm courtyards. We look out over a wild green landscape where leopards and Indian tigers still roam. 

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Achill Island: a postcard from the lost world

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A walking festival draws us to Achill Island on Ireland’s wild and beautiful west coast.

On the first night of the festival, we meet walkers from all over Ireland. Among them are Maree & Seamus O’Brien, Brid & Paula (named after the last Pope), the O’Reilly brothers and their nephew Jean-Paul (also named after a Pope) and Michelle, a fellow Camino aficionado. There’s also Anne & Ivan, an American couple keen like us to walk the land of their ancestors and know more of its stories.

Our leader is Tomás, an Irish-speaking archaeologist and mountaineer. Before we start climbing, he advises us to move gracefully up the slope, stop and let the wind pass and be mindful of our fellow walkers.

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Gotland: a postcard from the lost world

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From the railing of a ferry, a man watches the sea below

Strong winds and heavy seas are forecast for our 90-kilometre ferry journey from mainland Sweden to the island of Gotland. In the middle of the Baltic Sea, bells ring out, the ferry slows and passengers gather on the foredeck. In fading light, the bishop of Gotland recites a poem in memory of the eighty Gotlanders lost when a Russian submarine torpedoed the civilian ferry, Hassa, 70 years ago. Ancestors of the dead cast a wreath into the grey and gravid sea. 

Visby, Gotland’s capital, is an intact medieval walled city. Its streets are gracious with muted yellow and pink gabled merchant houses. Once-magnificent churches, ransacked during the Reformation, lie in ruins.

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Josef and the Silver Way

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Josef and the Silver Way was Anna’s entry in a competition run by the Chilean Friends of the Camino: 100 Caminos 100 Stories

In the middle of a pandemic, when no one could travel, these short stories of 100 words reminded us of shared adventures as well as the range of emotions and feelings experienced walking the Camino.

Over 700 entries were received from 43 countries and from these Josef and the Silver Way was selected for publication and awarded an Honorable Mention by the judges.  

Josef and the Silver Way

We walk by torchlight with Josef until dawn breaks and the earth’s shadow fades to blue. He’s 76 years old and the most inspirational of the pilgrims we meet on the Via de la Plata. Over dinner, he tells us that when his beloved wife died he sought solace in walking. He found his rhythm in the forests of Germany and one day set out from his home to walk the ancient pilgrimage path to Santiago. Serene, gracious, wise, he shows us the person we want to be at his age. Still walking, still open to beauty at every turn.

You can read all the entries, in Spanish and English, in the online version 100 Caminos 100 Relatos.

A huge thanks to the Chilean Circle of Friends of Way of Santiago de Compostela for this inspiring competition: 100 Caminos 100 Relatos: Historias breves a Santiago. Check their website for updates and news of new competitions.

Our first Camino was, like most people, the Camino Frances. This is our account of walking 700 km to Santiago and how it changed our lives.

The first light of day lights up the sandstone cliffs of the Wonderland Range

Grampians Peaks Loop, Australia

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The Grampians Peaks Loop beckons. After a year of confinement, the allure of wandering through wild landscapes for days on end is irrestible.

Starting at Mt Zero and extending southwards to Mt Abrupt, the yet-to-open Grampians Peaks Trail is a 160-kilometre-long walking path. As a precursor to its launch, a 35-kilometre loop walk showcases a section of the new Trail. It features some of the most spectacular scenery in the Grampians, including the Wonderland Range, the Pinnacle and Mt Rosea.

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