Eva on the Via Francigena (and beyond)

The Via Francigena is an ancient pilgrimage route connecting Canterbury, England and Rome, Italy. It stretches over 2,000km (~1,200mi) across the UK, France, Switzerland, and Italy. The path that is walked today follows the footsteps of Archbishop Sigeric the Serious’s 990 BCE return from Rome after receiving his pallium — though the path was first documented under another name in 725 BCE.

Like the better-known Camino de Santiago in Spain, the Via Francigena hosts pilgrims on all sorts of journeys, whether religious, spiritual, or health-minded. In addition to being significantly longer, the VF is also less populated: in 2022, 17,500 pilgrims walked or cycled part of the VF, compared to over 400,000 pilgrims walking the Camino.

So why walk the Via Francigena?

This is an extremely fair question – why on earth would one choose to walk across Europe when faster, more comfortable methods of travel exist? Yet I’ve been drawn to the idea of pilgrimage, and specifically of the VF, since I first learned of its existence as a college student recently returned from a summer in Italy. Over the course of many years, I have researched the path, scoured blogs, and plotted my course, waiting for the right time in my life where to set off.

A few months ago, I realized that the time was now. I had been living in Rome – a dream I never imagined during those years of meticulous pilgrimage planning – and preparing for a move to France and a change in career. I had the opportunity to leave my job a few months early, and decided to give the VF a shot.

Have I been preparing – physically and mentally – for such a long journey? …Sort of. I’ve hit the gym and done plenty of practice day hikes outside of Rome. Unfortunately I suffered a minor injury recently, so have paused my training to focus on recovery so I am ready to walk come August.

What is my goal here? I’ve been a goal-oriented person for most of my life, and for the most part have been chugging along on the rails of a series of five-year plans I’ve made. So – to the extent possible – I am trying to approach this without a fixed goal in mind. I’ll start walking in Canterbury and see how far I go. Along the way, I hope to use the time to reflect on my life and on my future, to slow down and appreciate the world around me, to spend less time looking at screens and more time talking to others. And since I’m incapable of living a completely unstructured life, I’ll be recording my day’s activities with the framework of sharing a song a day. I am a firm believer that life is enhanced by a good soundtrack – I’m happy to share mine with you.

I’m writing this blog because throughout my planning and dreaming, I relied heavily on blogs detailing the experiences of other pilgrims, many of whom completed their walks pre-2020. So, I want to pay it forward to other future pilgrims. However far I make it, if you are seeing this – I hope you find inspiration for your own journey. Buon cammino.