Day 15 Valfabbrica: and the farewell to the Eremo

Before leaving the hermitage, it is tradition for the hosts to give the pilgrims a blessing. In a prayer they ask Saint Francis to be by our side on the way. I must admit, this moved me to tears. A reason for me to take another look at the hermitage and yesterday evening.

The continuation of a special tradition

With the departure of the last hermits, an association has taken on the task of continuing to welcome pilgrims to the Eremo di San Pietro. Volunteers come up for two weeks at a time to feed the pilgrims and carry on an old tradition.

I thought it was a joke when they told us that our feet would be washed. At 6 p.m. the bells did indeed ring. Everyone gathered in the chapel and, after a fixed ritual and a prayer, the hosts washed our feet as a sign of respect. It is an act that is already mentioned in the Old Testament and is still practiced in the Catholic Church on Maundy Thursday.

When it happens to you, the ritual takes on a new meaning. We were all deeply touched by it. Afterwards, we were treated to a very good meal and lovingly pampered.

And what else was

Today's 22 kilometers were mostly on narrow paths and very varied. The last three hours were dominated by Lago di Valfabbrice, a reservoir that stretches long and fjord-like through the valley. We see it again every few kilometers as we walk downhill, always in a different form.

All the pilgrims set off alone this morning (after the blessing), I met two of them on the way and we walked the rest of the way together. And of course the main topic is yesterday evening. It outshone today in the truest sense of the word.

The agreement at our destination, Valfabbrice, is not of great importance to us. The place is not as attractive as we are used to from the other towns we have visited in the last two weeks.

Tomorrow we're going to Assisi. Unfortunately we haven't found accommodation yet because everything there is full. We'll see how that goes.