No early starts today. Leisurely breakfast, slow trawl through various, not too arduous chores – washing, emails, blogging, checking Nellie's legs, cleaning kit, then a gentle mooch back into Fidenza, where we hope to meet Carla Cropera, Secretary General of the ASSOCIAZIONE EUROPEA DELLE VIE FRANCIGENA. No chance. We always knew that pilgrims have a small voice with regard to the via Francigena, but at her level, we have none at all. One wonders who the VF was created for in Italy (in spite of its grandiose name the AEVF in fact only represents the VF in Italy). No, on the contrary, we know who it was created for – the commiteees, events organisers and the people who attend them – invitee lists that do not include pilgrims. Our meeting with Irene Amadei and her staff is useful, informative and in some ways encouraging, if only because it confirms a number of our suspicions. The VF project is still choked by administrative red tape. The lamentable state of the signing is unlikely to change in the near future, meaning that pilgrims will still have to rely on one guide book or another to see them through Italy (we estimate that only 10% of the junctions are signed on the section we have currently verified). But more positively, the VF route from Montgenevre has been officially recognised as a VF variant, as have a number of others. Equally, the excellent work carried out by the enthusiastic signers in that area has been recognised by Irene and others. A small step in the right direction.
When we get back, Nellie is sprawled out in the sun and we do not have a great deal to do, other than get our freshy washed sleeping bags back on the beds and watch a red sunset follow its course. This is the life!
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