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  1. Rex

    Lucca to Siena February

    You are veteran hikers, so as long as you have appropriate gear for Winter, you'll be fine. The trails from Lucca to Siena will most likely be wet and that Tuscan mud can be sticky, but the route is generally very visually rewarding, even in the heaviest rain (some of which I encountered on my...
  2. Rex

    Combining meds in one container

    Actually, the counting machines are far more accurate and cost effective than having a human count them out; whilst blister packs of individual pills are quite eco-unfriendly (too much packaging). Just happy to be carrying pills and still doing Caminos, as opposed to sitting home in a rocking...
  3. Rex

    Combining meds in one container

    This is exactly what I do... Great idea and saves me from having to figure out which med is which when they look similar. Those little glassine zip-locks that are about 2"X3" are perfect for small pills. Also, I include a bit of cotton batting (or a cut up cotton ball) in the zip-lock bag to...
  4. Rex

    Lucca to Rome on Via Francigina

    I walked the VF from Lucca to Rome in May 2024 and saw pilgrims every day. However, when I asked several different hosts in various places about the timing of pilgrim traffic, most said they don't get much traffic after September or early October. This is mostly because the Italians are back...
  5. Rex

    The price of coffee in Spain and the perplexing economics of it

    The fellow who took over SBUX in 1986 was named Howard Schultz and he had a vision for coffee shops as "third places" (not home, not office) where people could gather and have a cup of coffee like they do in Italy and Spain and other places in Europe. The irony is that the fellow who started...
  6. Rex

    Avoiding currency exchange fees

    So sorry this happened to you. Most likely, the DCC was somewhere in the fine print on the screen and you were the victim of what we call a "negative response necessary" scam. Some foreign banks ATMs have begun to show the DCC as the "primary" or "default" option and the customer must enter a...
  7. Rex

    Avoiding currency exchange fees

    Full disclosure: I was an employee of a Schwab subsidiary for several years of my investment management career. For this I have done much penance, but I digress. Schwab makes their money (as do all other banks/credit unions/brokerage companies) in foreign currency on the spread between the...
  8. Rex

    Where would it be a good village to spend day off between Leon and Santiago de Compostela

    Astorga was where I spent a rest day, complete with evening chocolate factory/museo tour in 2013. Very nice little city.
  9. Rex

    Great female fado singer dies at age 69

    Obrigado... a loss for all of us who know Fado. It was a 1/2 day well spent in the Fado Museo in Lisboa in 2018 when I first really encountered Fado. The back-stories (as usual in life) provided a rich context to understand the music and the message. RIP Misia.
  10. Rex

    Please, do not consider donativos as cheaper

    The costs of some of the old monastery/convent donativos are much higher than we know (but having been a trustee of a monastery, I do know!) And since I "know", a combination of gratitude and guilt often result in my donation being similar to what I would pay a small hotel. I understand that...
  11. Rex

    Cheating

    So many great responses here. This happens globally in many resorts and "snowbird" locales, even in the good ol' USA. My wife and I happen to live part of the year in a popular "snowbird" destination where we have been going for the winter for upwards of 20 years. A couple of years ago the...
  12. Rex

    First day: Besancon to Foucherans or Besancon to Ornans ?

    Above: Two pics of Ornans from Bastille Day (14 July, 2022). I concur that it is worth a 1/2 day, but I walked around the periphery of the town in about an hour. Unfortunately, the museum and church were both closed. I followed Timr's route from Besonçon with a couple of minor deviations and...
  13. Rex

    First day: Besancon to Foucherans or Besancon to Ornans ?

  14. Rex

    Half a wild boar

    I saw multiple dead boar carcasses or remains along parts of the VF in eastern France and the forested areas of Italy. If one hikes long enough in the right places, one will see more than one dead boar along the trail. There is a concerted effort in some forested areas to remove them entirely...
  15. Rex

    An Aussie on the VF

    @timr You are correct, the Croq'Loisirs place was closed (aftermath of COVID had something to do with it) and the lady at the Mairie office gave me a key to their small pilgrim house with four beds and a rudimentary kitchen. It is a donativo of sorts (they took my offering, but didn't really...
  16. Rex

    The world is really a small place

    Just finished with the VF in Rome on May 19th. Now reminiscing about that exhilarating journey... and planning my next Camino. How do you spell Camino Addict?!! Due to happy circumstance, on my way home to the USA, I took a side trip to Berlin to meet my wife (a retired classical musician) and...
  17. Rex

    Guidebook or accommodation PDF

    A second vote for getting the package from Confraternity of Pilgrims to Rome. Their group is totally volunteer run and exists to help VF pilgrims. The membership stipend is quite reasonable and they delivered my credential, backpack badge and other information to my lodging in Canterbury where...
  18. Rex

    Guidebook or accommodation PDF

    Also, be sure to book ahead at the hostel up on Great St Bernard Pass. It was completely full when I crossed the pass in late Sept 2023, not least due to their hospitality extending to all hikers and travelers. As “timr” noted above, the scenery is priceless and made the extra expense well...
  19. Rex

    Guidebook or accommodation PDF

    Edit. 35 CHF at Saint Maurice, not Euros.
  20. Rex

    Guidebook or accommodation PDF

    The St Maurice Abbey was 35 Euros in 2023, included breakfast served by one of the monks.

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