The others

After the lockdown Italians made beaches and mountains overcrowded, while many people stayed home because of fear of contagion. On the 'other' via Francigena Elisa and Gabriella showed how to be panic free while remaning safe.

 by Emanuele Bonini

No fear. No panic. Keep calm and carry on. Or, well! Keep calm and walk on. That’s exactly what two young Italian ladies do in times of Coronovirus. Despite all, they walk the line linking the central part of Italy to the south-eastern region Apulia. Elisa and Gabriella, marching on together, set off on discovery of their land, for an 800 kilometers long adventure, step more, step less.

The two young ladies have been covering 25 kilometers per day, on average. The departure took place 10 day ago, in Velletri, 40 kilometers far from Rome. Arrival foreseen 5 October, in Santa Maria di Leuca. The long march has been located along the Via Francigena. Not the official one, rather the less know twin path. In the Middle Ages, Via Francigena was the major pilgrimage route to Rome from the north. It put in connection, and still does, the Eternal City with the rest of Europe. There is also a pilgrimage route connecting Rome with Jerusalem, and that's exactly the one chosen by Elisa and her comrade.

In somehow the so-called 'Southern Via Francigena' is a prolongation of the main route, even if it has no official recognition compared to the real, northern, Via Francigena. No problem. On the contrary, the fact that this pedestrian itinerary is less popular makes it less populated, and that's very positive in times where gatherings and crowds are kindly recommended to be avoided.

 

Of course pilgrims and comfort never travel together, and this story makes no exceptions. Elisa and Gabriella are forced to find a solution every day, day by day. Reception facilities are not there, the two walkers are. And they keep on going, welcomed by everybody they meet along the way, to whom they turn with the protective mask, of course.

Gabriella and Elisa

«A lot of people stop us to ask who we are, what we do. It happens especially in the little villages», Elisa explained. «They are very welcoming, much more than local people you find in the North of Italy», stressed the woman, not new with these kind of experiences. She walked the via Francigena from Piedmont to Rome. Elisa is thus now completing her personal pilgrimage, not a religious one. «I do this because I believe it is a good way to visit and discover Italy», she explained.

Regarding the other walker, Gabriella is definitely more spiritual in nature. She’s a believer, and she’s proud to be. Now she got the opportunity to visit all those churches and the holy places unknown to a huge part of Italians, and not only them.

Who knows? Maybe, by counting and telling about this trip, these two young ladies are going to became a sort of spokespersons of this part of the country they have been exploring. Certainly they will be ambassadors of season change. Elisa and Gabriella started their journey in Summer, and they will end it in Autumn. That’s exactly when a second wave of COVID-19 is expected to arrive. Don’t think about. No fear. No panic. Keep calm and carry on. Or, well! Keep calm and walk on.