Day fifty and still going. I also caculated that the distance to Rome is the same as the entire Camino Frances starting from St Jean PdP. Yeesh!
Today got off to a rough start as did not feel at all well after waking up during the night with a nasty headache. I think I’d slept with my head at an odd angle. Do I skipped breakfast as I was not sure I would retain it, but figured that some fresh air would do the trick. And when the day ahead is over 30km, there is lots of fresh air. And it was raining to boot.
However, the rain petered out after about an hour, and the fresh air cleared my head, so when I got to the first interim town – which helpfully had a map indicating where everything of intetest was – I detoured reasoning that at least one of the three cafes indicated would be open. One cappuccino later and I was set for the rest of the day. That first section was gnarly going – many km along the top of a flood stop bank, which was finished with river stones. Horrible to walk on,but the redemption was beautiful views in the moring light as the rain clouds broke up.
The rest of the day was paddy fields, canals, irrigation and drainage systems all the way to Mortara. The place I planned to stay at is attached to a restaurant, but as it is closed on Sunday, I had to kill a couple of hours until the owner came at 1700 to check me in. This was not an issue: first up, my first Italian gelato. I picked the store with the biggest line up. Then a beer, but this proved way more challenging than finding gelato! Maybe because there was a huge event in town. Every public space was taken up with demonstrations by sports teams and other physical activities. The town was thronged with people, music pulsed from every plaza, and it was quite an exciting atmosphere. I nursed my beer and enjoyed the volleyball demo, the gymnastics, and the high energy dance folks trying to get members of the crowd all hot and sweaty!
Did I ever say how bad AccuWeather is in Italy? There was no indication of rain for last night and this morning. Mind you, the official Italian weather service is run by the Air Force, and the home page only has forecasts for Milan and Rome. No wonder southern Italy feels alienated!
Daily km: 34.9
2saunter 