Eva on the Via Francigena (and beyond)

Song of the Day: You Never Give Me Your Money / Sun King – The Beatles

It’s not cheating to choose multiple songs if they were recorded as part of a medley…just saying.

As I come into these final days of this walk, I’ve been thinking about how I can possibly sum up the rich experiences of the last 3 months. How can I synthesize, process, everything that I’ve done? How can I make sure I remember the highlights and the lowlights? How can I capture these feelings?

To be honest, I’m still not sure, but I know that using these songs of the day is certainly part of it for me. As I was reflecting on the songs I have chosen so far, for many (though admittedly not all) stages it was easy for instantly remember the song, and to connect it to the moment I decided on the song.

That moment for me today was listening to the second side of Abbey Road. When Devon and I were young and used to share a room, we would choose a CD to listen to each night as we went to bed. Abbey Road was definitely in the rotation. So most of these songs feel almost imprinted onto my DNA.

When I think of “You Never Give Me Your Money” I normally think of the intro, slow and solemn. I had almost forgotten how joyous I feel when it breaks into:

“Out of college, money spent / see no future, pay no rent / All the money’s gone, nowhere to go…But oh that magic feeling, nowhere to go / Oh, that magic feeling, nowhere to go…”

And while I do have somewhere to go — Rome — it is a magic feeling to have these 3 months of freedom. Then, the song transitions to Sun King. I listened to this as I was walking in the forest and the sun just began to peer through the trees.

I accidentally snoozed my alarm in my sleep this morning, so was surprised to see it was almost 7 when I finally checked the time. Whoops. But, with the hostel to myself I was quick to pack up and head out the door, setting out in search of breakfast. After a quick pit stop at a bar in town I was following quiet streets through suburbs. After walking for about an hour I was stopped at a railroad crossing to wait for a regionale train to fly by. Shortly after, I headed into a lovely wooded section.

Like the day after Bolsena, the woods here were light and airy, filled with tall trees and very little underbrush. A thin layer of fallen leaves coated the ground. It was beautiful and peaceful, quiet except for the chatter of the occasionally group of bikers who would quickly pass by. Eventually this trail led me out of the woods, darting across the Via Cassia, and through rows of hazelnut trees.

As I rounded a corner, emerging from a grove of trees, I saw a familiar face ahead of me. Sergio was stopped, photographing the Towers of Orlando — Roman-era towers named after the nephew of Charlemagne who apparently liked to hunt in the woods around here. We ended up walking together for awhile, chatting about his life in Mallorca. When the pain meds he is taking for his knee started to wear off, he slowed down and with an “a dopo” I continued on.

Soon enough I found myself wandering into the charming village of Capranica, where I stopped in a shop for a prosciutto and mozzarella sandwich and a chat with the owner. On the way out of town I saw Sergio again, but was quickly on my own as I headed up a hill once again lined with high walls of tufa, then downhill to a rambling forest path paralleling a stream.

I followed the stream through the forest for over an hour, heading up and down hills and over slick wooden bridges crossing the stream. The forest evolved from being dark and damp, full of mossy boulders, to then lighter and leafy (and back again). With no cell service, trying to focus on being present, I strolled along listening to the sound of the stream. But, like with many of these days, I could feel myself starting to flag. My hips were aching, I think I was more doubled over than I should have been, and I was getting sharp pain in my knees with every downhill. I wanted to be done for the day

Just when I was truly starting to feel like I was fully wiped out, thankfully, I emerged to an unexpected view of Sutri…sitting high above me on a hill of tufa. The signs were directing me to Sutri’s well-known archaeological park which was down here with me. I had originally wanted to try and drop off my pack first, but I knew immediately that if I climbed the hill once there was no way I was coming back down. I sat for a few minutes on a park bench, eating chocolate and staring at the middle distance, just glad to have my pack off.

So, I headed over to the ticket office where I was told I needed to reserve a time for one of the attractions, and the next opening was in an hour. In the end that was just enough time to see everything else.

I started with the famous Roman Amphitheater. Though not as big as more famous amphitheaters, this one is notable because rather than being built up from the ground, it was carved out of the tufa stone. Evidently the Romans were inspired by the Estruscans, who carved necropoli out of the tifa here in Sutri and elsewhere in the region.

As I’ve mentioned previously, I find the Estruscans fascinating. They are a somewhat mysterious prehistoric civilization, contemporaries of the Greeks, who developed a widespread trading network and heavily influenced the Romans in the later period of their existence. Not much is known about them, as most of what remains from that period is in these necropoli. However, they have left strong fingerprints all over Tuscia, which covers this region of Lazio as well as parts of Tuscany.

I did a quick lap of the gardens above the archaeological park before retiring to a bench to listen to a podcast on the Estruscans. Just before my 2:40 appointment, Sergio appeared next to me. We waited together until a woman came around to open the Mithraeum. This was a former pagan temple dedicated to the god Mithra, the god of a Indo-Iranian religion that was spreading in Italy around the same time as Christianity. It centered around a god who created the universe through the defeat of a cosmic bull, and bulls were slaughtered as part of a ritual sacrifice. This Mithareum, like many others, had been carved out of a pre-existing cave. Later, it was converted into a church, and was covered in 15th century frescoes. It was a super interesting experience and a very evocative location — well worth the wait.

After this visit I went to check into my B&B, and then went for a lap around the town. While in the main square I saw a woman who looked familiar. “Excuse me,” I said, walking up to her, “but is your name Jen?” It was, and I introduced myself — she recognized my name too. Jen has been walking a bit behind me for much of this journey, and posts about her experience in short poems in the Via Francigena facebook group. I had seen that she had leapfrogged me and knew that we may cross paths around here — meeting her in person felt like meeting a celebrity! I sat down and had a glass of wine, and we talked about each of our experiences of the walk, the highs and lows, and what we have learned so far. It was interesting and refreshing to talk to someone who had started from Canterbury (since so many people do short section of the Italian portion) and who — like me — was starting to feel tired after 3 months of walking. We had a great chat before I left her for both of us to return to writing.

After a bit of down time in the Airbnb I headed to a restaurant for dinner of pasta e fagioli and, of course, a tiramisu. I have a massive headache (so apologies for the shorter-than-usual update), so off to bed for me.

Final mileage: 16.75 mi
Walking time: 7h 52m (including time in archaeological park)
Elevation gain: 793 ft

Accommodation: Notti d’Oriente B&B. Well-located in the Centro Storico. It’s a shame that there is no pilgrim accommodation in Sutri proper (everything else is outside the city). It’s a lovely town so worth paying up for a B&B in the center so you have time to explore the archaeological park and the town.