We did it!
Day One - San Miniato to Gambassi Termini - about 24kms.
We saw amazing views every way we turned, fields of vines and olive trees, beautiful old houses, and undulating hills as far as the eye could see.
For the first part of the day we didn’t see any other pilgrims but as we reached the half way point we came across 17 Italians out hiking for the weekend. We also met a guy from Israel and a French couple.
The last 4 km were uphill - not particularly steep but it went on for ever, and our feet were getting tired.
At last our refuge for the evening appeared - an old monastery converted into simple rooms for pilgrims.
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| Our route |
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| The elevation - look at that hill at the end! |
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| Leaving San Miniato |
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| San Miniato from a distance |
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| A first aid box for pilgrims |
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| A book for pilgrims to sign |
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| Pretty houses and views |
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| When we got nearer to this house we saw that the animals lived downstairs and their owners up stairs. |
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| Nearly there! |
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| These Italian hikers were walking for just a few days |
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| What a beautiful house to restore as a resting place for pilgrims |
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| Halfway up the steep climb |
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| The one and only bar on today's route |
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| Keep going up, that's Gambassi Termi in the distance! |
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| The very old monastery which is our home tonight |
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| Our 'cell', the ceiling is very pretty |
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| That's a lot of flights! |
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| Relaxing in the garden |
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| Gambassi Termi - up hill all the way! |
