Elinor LeBaron > Quotes

“pastries at a bakery early in the morning, but bakeries generally don’t serve coffee or provide seating. Lunches:  Plan to carry food with you for lunches, since the routes often take you away from towns and cities.  It’s best to purchase food for lunches the evening before so you don’t have to find a grocery store.  Most are not open early in the morning. Remember that most grocery stores close by 8:00 pm. Health: Water and Sanitation”
― Elinor LeBaron, Via Francigena: Practical Tips for Walking the “Italian Camino”

“Convents and monasteries offer very basic accommodations: a bed (often a cot) with a bottom sheet or mattress cover and, usually, a pillow.  You definitely will need a sleeping bag or a sleeping bag liner and small blanket.  Shower rooms and toilets are available.  Sometimes unrelated men and women are lodged together in large rooms, but rooms usually have 3-5 cots, in my experience.”
― Elinor LeBaron, Via Francigena: Practical Tips for Walking the “Italian Camino”

“The Last Hundred Kilometers Once you get to Rome, you will probably want to receive a testimonium, a certificate of completion of the pilgrimage. To get a testimonium, you must prove you have walked or cycled the required distance.  Your proof is your credenziali or Pilgrim Passport that has been stamped at each of the places you have stayed.  The Opera Romana Pellegrinaggi (ORP) offers testimonia to pilgrims who have walked at least the last 100 kilometers from Montefiascone. If you prefer to receive a testimonium from the Vatican, you must either walk the last 140 kilometers from Acquapendente or cycle the distance from Lucca to Rome, over 400 kilometers.”
― Elinor LeBaron, Via Francigena: Practical Tips for Walking the “Italian Camino”

“Practical Advice for the Trail Electricity Many electrical devices in Italy use plugs with three round pins, requiring outlets such as the one pictured below.  The outlet will not take the usual two round-pin European plugs, but most rooms have at least one outlet that will, such as the outlet below.  Electricity in Italy is 220 Volts, 50 cycles.”
― Elinor LeBaron, Via Francigena: Practical Tips for Walking the “Italian Camino”

“Pilgrims who arrive in Rome on foot or by bike on a “devotionis causa” pilgrimage are welcome to stay at a recently refurbished hostel, the Spedale della Provvidenza in Travestere.  It is operated by the Franciscan Missionary Sisters and the Confraternity of St. James.  The women running the hostel will invite you to share an evening meal with them.  My recommendation: Join them. I did, and it was a wonderfully memorable experience.”
― Elinor LeBaron, Via Francigena: Practical Tips for Walking the “Italian Camino”

“Breakfasts:  These usually consist of bread, butter, jam or a croissant and coffee or tea.  Café bars are the best bets for finding breakfast, since they’re often the only places open early in the morning.  You can find croissants or other”
― Elinor LeBaron, Via Francigena: Practical Tips for Walking the “Italian Camino”

“Phones and the Internet If you choose to carry your cell phone on your walk, please check with your carrier to ensure that it will work in Italy.  Do this before leaving your home country.  Carriers will sometimes give you special rates between another country and the US. Another option, if your phone is unlocked, is to buy a phone card or chip when you get to Italy.  This might be a cheaper alternative, especially if you’re using your phone for calls within Italy.  You can also buy a data package, if desired.  Check with your carrier to be sure your phone is unlocked before you leave home. A third option, if you want a phone, is to rent one at the airport.  I’d check online for more information on doing this.”
― Elinor LeBaron, Via Francigena: Practical Tips for Walking the “Italian Camino”

“Since Rome is the last stop on the pilgrimage trail, the hostel allows pilgrims to stay for up to two nights, if there is enough room. The volunteer staff is welcoming and the accommodations very clean and comfortable.  Normally, this hostel separates men and women, housing each in large rooms with bunk beds.  Occasional exceptions are made to this house rule when work is underway in one of the rooms.  Leave your shoes outside before going upstairs into the hostel.”
― Elinor LeBaron, Via Francigena: Practical Tips for Walking the “Italian Camino”

“The cutout and the pilgrim painted on the asphalt in the photo above have a distinct purpose:  to alert pilgrims to a change in the direction of the route.”
― Elinor LeBaron, Via Francigena: Practical Tips for Walking the “Italian Camino”

“Or you can use a computer for free in most public libraries.”
― Elinor LeBaron, Via Francigena: Practical Tips for Walking the “Italian Camino”

“In lieu of a special stamp, you can also receive the stamp of a business.  Whatever the type of stamp, the stamps indicate that you walked or cycled at a pace befitting a pilgrim”
― Elinor LeBaron, Via Francigena: Practical Tips for Walking the “Italian Camino”