Category: news-en-import

The pilgrim stick – our Olympic torch – which will be passed from pilgrim to pilgrim during the relay march “Via Francigena. Road to Rome 2021” has arrived!The event celebrates both the EAVF foundation, which took place on 7 April 2001 in Fidenza (Parma, Italy), and the 27th anniversary of the recognition of the Via Francigena as a “Cultural Route of the Council of Europe“, granted in 1994.

The Road to Rome is a great moment of celebration, a long relay march on foot and by bicycle along 3,200 km of the Via Francigena. The walkers will carry a pilgrim stick as an Olympic torch passing it to the next group, step by step, along the entire journey.

A Hazel stick sourced 3 years ago by Michael Walsh near Holycross Abbey in Tipperary, Ireland will be used in this initiative. It has been seasoned, cleaned and prepared with over 10 coats of boiled linseed oil to get it ready for its journey.  

The artwork was completed by a local artist Julie Helen Sharp and the cord grip was made by a stick maker Declan O Shea.

The stick was blessed by the Parish Priest of Holycross, Fr Celsus Tierney on 26 Feb 2021, praying for all those who will take part in this long walk.

Special thanks to the Confraternity of Pilgrims to Rome, who suggested us to obtain the walking stick and drove the whole process. 

More information about the Road to Rome 2021 here

The opportunity is reserved to new graduated students who have obtained a high school diploma in a school along the Via Francigena: 21 students have already departed, and 49 more are getting ready to leave.

This was possible thanks to the project “FORREsT: new skills FOR expeRiEntial Tourism”, of which EAVF is a leading partner, and which falls under the wider project Erasmus+.

The project aims at reacting to new international tourism trends (experiential and sustainable tourism), and at promoting the economic and productive development of areas affected by the crossing of the Via Francigena. The overarching target is the valorization of small local communities, which have a common pattern in their European cultural identity: the Via Francigena. The 21 students who are already travelling are spread across France and Spain, and some of them have already finished their experience and returned home.

The students have the possibility to undertake an educational / working internship in European organizations within the abovementioned working sectors. This is possible by obtaining a scholarship that includes:

• language preparations and proficiency through the European platform OLS

• roundtrip airplane tickets to the internship destination

• insurance coverage for the entire stay period

• accommodation; professional, organizational and logistic tutoring and monitoring

• proof of attendance and certification

 

One year later, the project “F.O.R.R.Es.T. 2.0 – FOsteR an euRopEan identity through the Trainees mobility” also started and is now ongoing. If the first edition was offered to graduates in high schools along the Via Francigena between Aosta and Rome, the “FORREsT 2.0” project speaks to 100 young graduates along the entire Italian route of the Via Francigena, from Valle d’Aosta to Puglia, once again offering working experiences in Spain, England and France.

More information:

• Erasmus FORREsT: new skills FOR expeRiEntial Tourism
  
• Erasmus F.O.R.R.Es.T. 2.0 – FOsteR an euRopEan identity through the Trainees mobility

 

Here are some of their reflections at the end of the experience:

“This activity certainly had a positive impact on my interpersonal relations, helping me develop an increased objective perception of the working environment”.

Francesco Caraccia – France

 

“This experience can give each of us the possibility to discover and improve many aspects of ourselves. We have been stimulated in countless ways: from the private to the working realm of experience. I can only speak positively of this project, and I am satisfied of what I learned about tourism, a sector I had no experience with”.

Gaia Colalucci – Spain

 

“It was a very educational experience; I discovered a new country, a new culture and made many friends. I also had the opportunity to walk into the working world as a translator, which is what I am now studying at the University. I would recommend anyone not to doubt about leaving, possibly for unknown destinations, to learn about new cultures and allow the mind to open as much as possible”.

Giulia Galli – Spain

 

“I leave with a heavier baggage, full of experiences and with an awareness I did not have before. I discovered that I am ready to work and to manage the marketing of a company. I really liked the experience; I am sure it opened my eyes on a working field I ignored beforehand. Now it is my duty to remain curious and eager to learn more and more!”

Sara Marconcini – Spain

 

Francisco Sancho, originally Spanish, then resident in Vicenza, transformed his pilgrimage in a full expression of Christian life. He has been walking for many years along all the key European pilgrim routes. We have met him in Champlitte on the 10th of March.

Luca Bruschi, director of the European Association of the Via Francigena ways, with Jacques Chevin, responsible for the development of the Swiss and French sections of the Via Francigena, met the pilgrim in Champlitte, starting point of the 40th stage of the Via. The city, since 2016, hosts the French EAVF headquarters. This morning, the city mayor Patrice Colinet gave his greeting and welcomed the traveler in town.

Francisco, with his pluriannual walk, is bringing forward his project “Walk of Light”: a trip in which, at each stage, he spares a moment of prayer and lights a candle, to leave, by the end of the journey, a “trail of light” and serenity.

His journeys:

 

– 2014: together with backpack, walking stick and faith, he left from the doorstep of the Basilica dei Santi Pietro e Paolo in Rome to start an itinerary that brought him to the tomb of Saint James in Compostela.The way back brought him to Le Puy en Velay, to surpass the Alps in the Val di Susa, and cross the north and center of Italy to reach Assisi and then return to Rome along the footsteps of San Francesco.

– 2015/2016: he leaves towards Santiago de Compostela and, passing by Brussels, he pushes himself up to Norway, where he visits the tomb of Sant’Olaf a Trondheim. He goes back to Rome passing through Cracow in occasion of the World Youth Day in 2016.

– 2019/ today: the 6th of July 2019 he starts a spiritual journey to Santa Maria di Leuca with the aim of connecting all the major faith destinations in Europe, the same ones that pilgrims and wayfarers walked since the Middle Ages. He expects to return to Santa Maria di Leuca for Easter 2021.

This is how Francisco shares his story:

“I already walked, during my 25 years of pilgrimage, most of these routes. I collected unforgettable experiences, met extraordinary people, who became my best friends. I collected witnesses, images, stories and episodes, but I also learned about pain, unbearable difficulties, I looked into the most hidden and dark faces of my soul, I met the uncertainty of living…with no doubt, the man who left is not the same one that returns.

In every place I crossed, I lit a lumen, recited a prayer and attempted to bring serenity, so that, when I will look back at the end of my journey, I will see a trail of light, a “Walk of Light”.

When I return, I wish to tell the story of my journey, physical and spiritual, through a series of photography exhibitions, across various Italian cities. My dream is to share with everyone my life experience and possibly get people closer to the idea of walking, meant as a spiritual and cathartic experience… Only God knows how much, today, it is necessary to slow down, at a walking pace, have the opportunity to meditate and observe the beauty of the world that surrounds us”.

 

It is possible to support Francisco Sancho’s journey here. The fundraiser will allow him to:

– Complete the Walk of Light, contributing to the little resources he needs to sustain himself: some food and a bed for the night;

– Organize events “Walk of Light” around Italy. “Walk of Light” is a photography exhibition that tells the story of his pilgrimage in Europe;

– Create and moderate a Facebook community, where anyone – pilgrims, wayfarers, passionate followers and interested people can share experience, suggestions, and support each other’s journeys.

“Thanks to the help of dear friends, I was able to confirm my first photography exhibition in Monte Sant’Angelo (FG), a loved city, from the 18th of June to the 11th of July 2021”.

Website: boanerges.es

Instagram: @franciscosanchopellegrino

Facebook Profile: Francisco Sancho Boanerges

 

On 4 March 2021, the French Ministry of Culture invited the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe (ICCE) to participate in a meeting chaired by the director of the UNESCO Culture and World Heritage department, Bruno Favel, and the head of the Culture and Tourism department, Nicolas Monquaut.

The goal of the meeting was to define the development strategies for the Council of Europe’s cultural routes through France. France is one of the countries with the largest number of certified routes, which represents an important resource for the development and attractiveness of the territories.

The EAVF was represented at this meeting by its vice-president, Martine Gautheron, and the person in charge of the development of the Via Francigena in France and Switzerland, Jacques Chevin.

The meeting was a good opportunity to point out the main crossings of the Via Francigena with other cultural routes such as the cities of Reims, Arras, Besançon, which are crossed by the Via Francigena, the Via d’Artagnan, and the Via Charlemagne.

After the big success of last year, the European Association of Via Francigena ways has decided to organize the second edition of the competition, which is open to public administrations, associations, tourist accommodations, and individual enthusiasts along the entire route of the Francigena.

The initiative celebrates the innovative management of cultural heritage by rewarding forward-looking cultural projects along the 3200 km long Via Francigena from Canterbury to Santa Maria di Leuca. The award aims to improve the visibility of the European cultural route and promote networking between the EAVF members and the territories crossed by the route.

Anything that can be considered a “good practice” is eligible: weekend walks, moments of discussion and reflection during conferences, actions involving schools, festivals, meetings, tastings to promote the food and wine of the Francigena territories, and much more. There are no limits to good examples!

Last year, the three winning “Good Practices 2019” were awarded with the “wooden pilgrim”, a handmade statue by Artio Design:

• “Grand Prix” awarded to the “Passeggiate nella storia”: re-enactment walks from Abbadia a Isola to the walls of Monteriggioni, organised by the Associazione L’Agresto with the support of the Tourism Office of the Municipality of Monteriggioni (Tuscany).
• Special Mention for Festival de Besançon/Mountfaucon: “Festival Européen de La Via Francigena”, between the Canton of Vaud (CH) and the Département du Doubs (FR), organised by the “Association Musique e Perspectives” in the summer period.
• Special mention for the “enhancement of the Vie Francigene del Sud” project, organised by the Association ITINERA Onlus and Lions District 108 AB. This project consists of a series of animation events involving schools, citizens, and museum structures in the Apulian territory following the extension of the Southern Via Francigena to Cultural Route of Europe.

The information gathered through the Good Practices competition will also be used to create a database containing all the beautiful and important initiatives taking place along the Via Francigena. This database will be made available to all members of the EAVF network.
The Via Francigena depends on the territories it crosses and the people who take care of it along the entire itinerary, which is why it is so important to us to give more visibility to everybody involved in these initiatives.

Eligible practices must have been active throughout 2020. In order to register, please click here. Registrations are open until 19 March 2021.

A “Via Francigena” rose was created in the city of Calais supported by the Association for the Enhancement of the Architectural Heritage of Calais (AMVPAC). The rose is the subject of a subscription, which sales will be used to renovate and enhance the Calais Notre-Dame church and the surrounding gardens.

Calais, the first outpost of the Via Francigena in France, has been the EAVF member since 2018. The municipality has been active in the work of the association, contributing to the development of the route in France and beyond.

In the Calais area the Via Francigena winds along a beautiful path that joins the North Sea and immerses itself in nature, passing through Sangatte and other picturesque villages. The fine sand, with its different colours changing with the seasons, becomes the leitmotif of this exciting “maritime” stage.

The rose Via Francigena was created in 2018 by rose breeders Dominique Massad and Peter Beales. It comes from a family of a wild rose “rosa persica” discovered in 1784 during a long journey of the botanist and explorer André Michaux, in the Zagros mountains, between Iran and Iraq.

A rose in yellow tones, an age-old colour for warm feelings of friendship of optimism and wisdom, and in white tones to express purity and respect, created to pay homage to new beginnings and to express hope for the to come up. A rose that would become an attribute of all those who undertake a journey whether they are pilgrims, hikers or tourists.

The rose will be available for sale in June 2021. The prices vary between 28€ and 30€.

You can buy them (or order them) directly from Opal’fleurs (Place d’Armes), the shop has a small stock of rose stems and will be able to advise you on the maintenance of your plant.

You can also fill out an order form and send it directly to AMVPAC’s head office.

For more information (photos, prices, descriptions…) you will find the PDF link below.

The European Association of the Via Francigena ways (EAVF) teams up with the European Cultural Tourism Network (ECTN), Europa Nostra and the Network of European Regions for Competitive and Sustainable Tourism (NECSTouR) to launch a new category of the award “Destination of Sustainable Cultural Tourism 2021”.

This Award, organised since 2014 by ECTN, enhances the visibility of European cultural tourism destinations, creates a platform for sharing experiences and knowledge. The 2021 edition of the Award is titled “Regenerating European tourism through Culture, Heritage and Creativity”.

The new category “Walking Tourism and Slow Travel – Synergies with Cultural Tourism”, hosted by the EAVF, praises initiatives focused on developing walking tourism routes, destinations and products with a special focus on sustainability, ethics and responsible travel.

Walking, the most common mode of travel, allows us to closer discover places and lets us stay fit and active. Walking tourism provides a unique opportunity to experience the destination and learn about its culture and heritage. While walking, ramblers get to interact with local people, live their traditions and reconnect with nature. Being the most sustainable way of travelling with almost zero carbon imprint, walking tourism is also affordable, welcoming everyone en route to a slow discovery outside of overcrowded tourist attractions. 

Requiring relatively low financial resources, walking tourism can be developed almost everywhere from local to pan European level. Creating a network of stakeholders and communities along the walking route, a slow discovery project brings a significant number of economic, social and cultural benefits to the territory.   

The year 2021 is specially marked by slow travel along the routes thanks to the Camino de Santiago Holy Year and the walking initiative “Road to Rome 2021” by the European Association of the Via Francigena ways. The award category is also of particular importance in the current climate of health emergency as the interest for slow travel along the routes is increasingly growing. 

Award winners will be announced at the Ceremony to be held during the 14th International Conference for Cultural Tourism on the theme of “Regenerating European tourism through Culture, Heritage and Creativity”, organised by ETCN on 20-23 October 2021 in Athens, Greece.
 
How to apply?
The Application form and the required Declaration can be downloaded in Word format from the website:
www.culturaltourism-network.eu/award-2021.html. The Application form and the Declaration together should be sent by e-mail to  awards@culturaltourism-net.eu by 1 June 2021.
 
Awards Jury
The Awards Jury will be composed of experts from several European countries, appointed by ECTN, Europa Nostra, the European Travel Commission, NECSTouR, CTN, Via Francigena Cultural Route.
 
The EAVF encourages all networks’ members, stakeholders and partners to apply for the award to praise their achievements along the Via Francigena!

District 108L Lions Club International is at the front line when it come to promoting peace, and the Via Francigena as Cultural Route of the Council of Europe represents the values of peace, respect, dialogue, democracy, and inclusion.

In District 108L (Umbria, Lazio, and Sardinia) the Via Francigena officially crosses through territories located within the region of Lazio and, in this regard, the district lions officer Sara Fresi has created a historical document entitled “Territories of Lazio crossed by the Via Francigena”. This document is a useful contribution for all those who wish to travel the Via Francigena and discover its picturesque landscapes and historical, cultural, monumental beauties. Following is the incipit of the document:

 

Territories of Lazio crossed by the Via Francigena, by Sara Fresi

In the 7th century the Longobards penetrated the Italian territory, occupying part of the peninsula at that time disputed with the Byzantines. They wanted to connect the Kingdom of Pavia with the southern duchies by means of a safe road across the Apennines, passing through the Cisa Pass: its name in ancient times was Mons Langobardorum, later called Via di Monte Bardone. It was basically a group of roads connected by consular and dirt roads. When the Franks took over in the Carolingian era, the Via di Monte Bardone changed its name to Via Francigena, or “road originating from France”.

Traffic along this route increased and, over the centuries, the road established itself as the main route linking northern and southern Europe, used by masses of pilgrims as well as merchants and armies. It also connected the three ‘Peregrinationes Maiores‘: Santiago de Compostela, the tomb of the Apostle Peter and the Holy Land. The European Network of the Vie Francigene is a legacy linking the present day to the cultural identities of the old continent.

A millenary route that crosses several European countries: England, France, Switzerland, and Italy. The Via Francigena in Italy crosses six regions: Valle d’Aosta, Piedmont, Lombardy, Emilia-Romagna, Tuscany and Lazio. The southern section of the Via Francigena, called the Via Francigena of the South, is a route of approximately 900 km that crosses five regions: Lazio, Campania, Basilicata, Molise, and Puglia. The stretch through the Lazio region is approximately 420 km long.

 

The whole document (in Italian) can be consulted by clicking here.

 

 

Saint Maurice, a small municipality in the Canton of Valais with great strategic importance, is located along the Swiss stretch of the Via Francigena, exactly halfway along the route followed by archbishop Sigeric on his journey to Rome. The European Association of Via Francigena Ways is incredibly happy to enrich its network with such an important institutional member, therefore we warmly welcome Saint Maurice and its representatives!

Saint Maurice is situated along the 51st stage of Sigeric’s itinerary and in Roman times was called Agaunum. It was located at a bottleneck formed by the Rhone river, thus taking on a role of great strategic importance. The famous Theban legion was stationed here, led by Maurice and exterminated at this location in the 3rd century for refusing to swear an oath to the gods before the battle because they had converted to Christianity. The martyrdom of St. Maurice and the legion turned ancient Agaunum into an important pilgrimage site along the Via Francigena.

The Abbey of Saint Maurice was founded on the tomb of the martyrs in 515 by Sigismund, son of the Burgundian king. From that moment the Abbey played an important role, becoming the centre of veneration of the martyrs and the main abbey in the Burgundian kingdom, as well as a pilgrimage destination. The Abbey of Saint Maurice thus became the oldest Christian monastery in the West and has been operative uninterruptedly since its foundation. Bearing witness to this past are the commemoration of Saint Maurice every 22 September and the Laus perennis, the perpetual prayer of the canons at the tomb of the martyrs, a custom that has continued for 1500 years.

Even today, Saint Maurice is the seat of ecclesiastical institutions and is known for its basilica and its church treasure, which contains rare masterpieces of sacred goldsmith’s art. Wars, fires, and falling rocks have repeatedly destroyed the funerary oratories, churches, and monastic buildings built in the 4th century at the foot of the cliff overlooking the site. The church was destroyed in 574 during a Lombard raid, but was rebuilt and enlarged based on the same floor plan under St. Gontrand (561-592). Numerous reconstruction phases and extensions followed.

The Trésor de l’Abbaye, one of the richest in Europe, consists mainly of reliquaries, including for example “St Martin’s Vase” and Theuderic’s casket both dating back to the 7th century A.D., as well as Charlemagne’s aquamanile from the 9th century and the so-called “bag of Saints Innocent and Candide” from the 12th century.

This small jewel of nature, art, and history has been a valuable part of the Via Francigena over the past centuries and now hand-in-hand with EAVF will continue to amaze pilgrims and visitors alike in the decades to come!

 

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

– The Abbey of Saint Maurice: 1500 years of uninterrupted existence

– The Castle of Saint Maurice

– Travel diary. The EAVF staff on the Aigle – Saint – Maurice stage

– Travel diary. The EAVF staff on the Saint Maurice – Martigny stage

– Technical information about Via Francigena Switzerland stage 07 Aigle – Saint Maurice

– Technical information about Via Francigena Switzerland stage 08 Saint Maurice – Martigny

 

 

In these difficult and restricted times of the pandemic many of us yearn for better times and the possibility to travel. This 4-part lecture series, taking place from 27 February to 2 March, will give participants a taste of what travelling along the Via Francigena in Italy will feel like once we get back on (the) track.

Partly recorded in different locations along the route, this virtual journey will trace the Via Francigena through Italy in four stages, from the spectacular Great St Bernard Pass in the Alps across seven regions of extraordinary cultural and geographical diversity, eventually reaching the Eternal City.

Cultural historian Kate Bolton-Porciatti will discuss its history and its connections to Lombard and Roman trade routes, and she considers why – for over a millennium – pilgrims and hikers have been drawn to explore it. We’ll listen to accounts of pilgrims and monks from the Middle Ages, including the famous writings of the Archbishop of Canterbury Sigeric who walked the entire route in 990 AD, as well as more recent writings and reflections.

We’ll follow the Via from the snow-capped mountains, alpine meadows, and river valleys of Aosta and Piedmont in northern Italy, through the misty flooded fields and emerald rice paddies of the Po Valley. Crossing the mountains and vine-clad hills of Emilia-Romagna and Tuscany, we reach the volcanic terrain around Monte Amiata, and then pass glittering Lake Bolsena to the wilder landscapes of Lazio. We’ll pause at abbeys, rural churches, roadside shrines, and ancient hospices; we’ll visit medieval castles and fortified ‘borghi’, as well as some of Italy’s historic towns and cities. Finally, we’ll sample some of the typical foods that characterize the different regions, from Alpine to Mediterranean traditions.

The four lectures will take place in the English language and will also offer practical advice for anyone considering walking, biking, or horse-back riding along the Via Francigena, as well as suggestions of where to join short stretches of it by car or public transport.

About the lecturer

Kate Bolton-Porciatti is a professor of Italian cultural history and music at the Istituto Lorenzo de’ Medici in Florence, where she teaches BA and MA courses in the humanities. She also lectures at the British Institute, Florence, and at the Chigiana Music Academy in Siena. Kate has published extensively as an academic and a journalist; she is a music critic for BBC Music and a travel writer for The Daily Telegraph, UK. Before moving to Italy permanently in 2005, she was a senior producer and broadcaster for BBC Arts & Classical Music in London and has won prestigious Jerusalem and Sony Awards for her programs. She did her M.Phil. thesis in Italy, exploring the musical culture of early Renaissance Florence.

For more information and subscriptions: https://conversations.contexttravel.com/products/via-francigena-journey