My first rest day. What an amazing reward after 5 days of tough hiking. Without my alarm, I slept until 10 o'clock. The sky was blue and my roommate had already left. I will never know who he was. Most important thing on a rest day? Taking rest off course, but there is something else. Washing clothes. Goodbye sweaty smell. In the city center, I found a self-service laundry with the great name: Xing Sheng. Do you know how you recognize a pilgrim in a laundry service? The guy in his boxershort, because all his other clothes are in the machine.\n
A big thank you to all the people who already did a donation to Make a Wish. Amazing, I'm so grateful. For those who would still like to help, definitely check the website https://www.inactievoormakeawish.be/fundraisers/dimitri-lanssens For all donations of 40 euro or more, tax certificates will be provided. Together we can make the dream of a child with a life threatening disease come true.\n The campsite where I'm staying is great. There is a bar with a nice terrace and even a swimming pool. It's only 0.8m deep and especially for children, but my tired legs loved it as well. Sitting down a whole day is nothing for me. I wanted to have a look around Martigny as well. This city started as a Roman settlement with the name Octodure. The Romans wanted a direct route towards Britain and that route went over the Col du Grand St Bernard. At the edge of town, there is a Roman amphitheatre. It is well preserved and amazingly, you can just walk through. I was there all alone. There were much more people next door in Barryland, a museum dedicated to the famous Saint Bernard dog. Roman ruins can be found throughout the city. It is fascinating to realise that this little mountain town once was a vibrant Roman city. Later, a medieval fort was built on a rock overlooking this city and Napoleon also came through. No monks singing in the church today, only loud snoring of a sleeping man on one of the benches. I ended my walk with a drink on the central square where children where playing in the fountains.\n The weather was particular today. With 31 degrees, it got really hot. But there was also this foehn wind that was blowing very hard. This evening, the wind disappeared as it came. As from tomorrow, they predict showers and thunderstorms but also cooler temperatures which is good.\n The upcoming days will be heavy. Three days in a row, I will have to climb 1000m to hopefully reach the summit of the Col du Grand St Bernard by Sunday evening. That is the roof of the Via Francigena. At the top, there is a world famous pilgrim hostel and I already have a booking. After that, I have 2 days to descend more than 2500m to the city of Aosta in Italy. If all goes well, I will be there on Tuesday evening. But first another good night of sleep. There is nobody in my dorm room tonight. I also haven't met anybody else who is walking to Rome. But that will change soon.
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AuthorMy name is Dimitri and I'm turning 40 in 2023. Through the years, I have tried to live my dreams. Everything is possible, the sky is the limit as long as you believe in your dreams and work hard to make them happen. Do what you never did before. Go where you have never been before. It will be scary, but it will also be worth it! Archives
July 2024
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