April 25 is special day for us. It was four years ago, on that day when we set off from St Jean Pied de Port France, to walk across the top of Spain to Santiago de Compostela, along the famed medieval pilgrimage trail called the Camino de Santiago.
The decision to make this journey came after a series of events. But it was due to our fondness of Spanish culture, which became an excuse to visit Spain for the first time; our love of walking and independent travel, and finally our yearning to do something different, something more adventurous. So in the months prior to that fateful day, we booked some flights, bought some new hiking equipment, did some training to prepare ourselves, and on that wet, cool and misty day in April, we left along with dozens of other modern day pilgrims to walk 780 km to the other side of Spain.
Little did we know then that this would be the start of series of journeys each one leading to another over the next four years.
Our journey to Santiago was a life changing experience. We left carrying 10 kg backpacks, taking the least amount of gear and clothing possible. There was no need to carry sleeping bags, tents or cooking equipment. Instead, we would sleep in hostels, albergues and small pensions, and eat out each night. Nevertheless, to walk for 30 days continuously, across an entire country was a different matter.
We had some trepidation, but soon discovered it possible to walk 20-30 km in one day, eat and then go to bed that evening, wake up at dawn and repeat the entire process the following day. Our journey became a pilgrimage, in the most modern sense of terms. And it was on this journey that we would learn about another pilgrim trail, this one being in Italy, called the Via Francigena.
Thus began another journey, Three years ago, we made the decision to walk the Via Francigena. We would walk from Switzerland to Rome a distance of 1,000 km. We set up a blog called Little Green Tracs and blogged about our experiences before, during and after the journey. Unlike the Camino, the Via Francigena was an elusive trail barely known outside of Italy; few people had walked it. Based on very rough estimates we concluded that only 1,000 people had walked to Rome during the past decade and received their Testimonium, a document similar to the Compostela issued and given to pilgrims in Santiago. But most had traveled the minimal distance of 100 km through Lazio and most were Italian. Very few had walked from Switzerland, and very few were North Americans.
Armed with homemade guidebooks and maps, we left Switzerland one cool but sunny September morning and arrived in Rome 54 days later. We knew that the trail was not well marked and there were conflicting reports about where the actual trail itself went. We knew that sections required walking along busy highways like the Via Emilia and Via Cassia. It would be a demanding walk in so many ways, and it became far more challenging than even we had expected.
But the rewards were many. There was the deep rich Etruscan, Roman and medieval history to see and touch and the modern contemporary Italian culture to experience and that fine, mouth watering Italian food and wine to savior.
We decided prior to departing that we would write a book about our experiences. Hence began another journey. Over that winter and into the following spring, we compiled our notes, reviewed many of the 4,000 photos taken during the walk, researched and made more notes, then wrote and wrote some more, so by April 2009 we had the first draft of our book. We circulated the first few chapters to close friends asking for their feedback.
Fortified with positive feedback but critical comments and suggestions, we finished the first draft later that summer. What followed were more revisions including a partial rewrite of the book that took us that winter and the following spring to complete.
Then yet again began another journey. We decided that we would self publish our book. This meant doing what a publisher would do. Such as hiring an editor and designer, contracting a company to print and distribute our book through a network of booksellers, and finally marketing and promoting our book.
Since we published our book late last summer, we have been interviewed on TV and radio, set up a website, done presentations, written articles, produced a YouTube video, blogged about the Via Francigena, set up a fan page on Facebook, and even tweeted on Twitter about our book and the Via Francigena.
The last four years have flown by quickly. There have been challenges, much to learn but we have enjoyed the many rewards, small and large. We have unsure of what lies ahead, we know nothing is certain, and change is constant. We continue to discover, moving forward, preparing ourselves for yet another adventurous journey on the path of life.
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