Hi everyone!
Well, we arrived in Shepherdswell this afternoon at about 3pm, tired but happy and very pleased that we had day no.1 securely under our belt. The walk today was 17.35 kms, to be as exact as my Garmin watch will allow…from the entrance of Canterbury Cathedral to the entrance of The Bell Inn, in Shepherdswell…. where we enjoyed a well earned refreshment : )
This morning we met at the Cathedral at 9.30 and sat in on the Sunday service, which we thought was a fitting start to our pilgrimage. For me..so many memories of the wonderful Camino, came flooding back, as I listened to the the singing of the local school choir. The Cathedral is truly magnificent…as I have already mentioned previously….not garishly ornate, as so many are..however austere in its grandeur but still quite beautiful.
Here we are outside the Cathedral, about to set off! Jo and I are wearing our CanTeen bandanas.
Speaking of CanTeen, I want to thank everyone who has donated so far, so generously to our cause. We are absolutely thrilled with your generosity!!
The walk to Shepherdswell was very pretty…. More often than not we followed the North Downs Way, a very well maintained walking track, one of many in this region. To be honest, the way markings along this track were so good that we ended up putting away the guide book and following the track, which eventually led us to the delightful village of Shepherdswell.
The Via Francigena signage was quite good but in some areas was a little obscure, however it was a pleasant feeling to find along the way little blue and yellow signs which alerted us to the fact that we were heading in the correct direction!
As I have already mentioned we arrived in Shepherdswell at around 3pm and enjoyed a glass…or two..of wine at The Bell Inn, a very quaint pub. We stomped in, exhausted, even though the days walk was relatively short…compared to some that we will have to endure on this walk..and were greeted with amused comments from the locals : ) These little country English pubs are endearing in their eccentricity… absolute delightful!
We are staying tonight at Codret House, a B&B about 2 kms out of Shepherdswell. Darryl and Jackie are our wonderful hosts and have been so hospitable, making us feel very much at home and have gone out of their way to make sure our needs have been satisfied.
Tonight, Darryl drove us to another, special little pub… The Lynden Bell,where the food was robust and delicious. A lovely end to a great day : )
Tomorrow, Ken and Rose, who I met on the Camino last year, are meeting us here at Coldret House in the morning and walking to Dover with us. So happy to see them again!
It’s exciting to be walking again… this time there’s a large measure of the unknown thrown in….. but really….that’s just life.
Love Netia XX
wheresnetia 
Once again you make it sound so inviting and exciting ……. : )x
Hola Netia, se ve tan bonito! Qué envidia! disfruta que la vida pasa demasiado rápido! Buena suerte y cuidado con los hombres, especialmente los que se encuentran en el pub 😉
Pues a caminar!! Cristina
Gracias Cristina!! Jaja… Que divertida!!
Looks like the weather has been kind for the start of your long journey. LOVE your photos!!!…..Take care and keep that back pack light!……will be with you all the way…..;-))xx..
You must be getting excited Julie, your trip is very close! Thinking of you all : )
Amazing,enjoy your travels across France! So lucky ,we’re enjoying the blog and the photos again are terrific! Xxxx
Greetings, Netia! I registered at WordPress.com just so I could comment on your blog. You’ve done a wonderful job! I’ve walked the Camino Frances twice and blogged the second time on Posterous.com. I chose it over WordPress because Posterous alllows the blogger to select a group of recipients who automaticaly receive all episodes via email without registering. It appears that with WordPress each recipient must register and check periodically to find new episodes. Since mine are sporadic (because of sleep, wine, spotty net access, etc) I thought that people would eventually just forget to look. Maybe email notifications are feasible on WordPress too; I’m new enough not to know. Anyway, your great blog has greatly accelerated my VF trip…maybe as soon as next spring. Thanks.
Hi Don!
So glad you enjoyed reading my blog and have been inspired to walk the VF in the near future : )
It really was an incredible experience….tough at times but wonderful all the same.
I’m at present sitting at the airport in Dubai, waiting for a connecting flight to Rome where I’ll be meeting my friend Jo in Assisi on June 4th. We plan to do a leisurely stroll from Assisi following the St Franciscan way for 8 or 9 days. This is a pilgrims walk which has always fascinated me so I’m giving myself just a taste…. : )
I then plan to attend a weeks live in cooking school in Tuscany….another of my passions! I’ll be blogging again but as you can see, this trip is very indulgent : )
Good luck Don, Netia
I’ll be looking for new blogs…while still reading all of those from the VF. Your blog makes that route look better than imagined and the distances appear doable. I go only 10 miles or so pr day because I want to take in all the churches, museums and red wine I can find.
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