Halloween and All Saints' Day

10/31 - Sessa Aurunca to Capua - 21.46 miles

I walked to Capua on Halloween, which was also my longest walk yet. I saw a horse and buggy being used as an actual method of transport, had run ins with various unleashed dogs, both stray and otherwise, and was awestruck by the fact that everything closed at lunchtime for around two hours. A grey day, it will always stick out in my mind as a long ramble through decrepit and depressing ghost towns. The picture to the right says it better than I ever could, so I'll stop there.

Reaching Capua just after dusk, having performed a miracle seven and half miles in the last two hours, I collapsed into a cappuccino, sat for a good long while, and when I was ready, asked the old men in front of the (closed) information center about lodging. One man got up to help, opened the office, and got on the phone. After arguing with a nun for ten minutes in an attempt (failed, but with hilarious results) to find me a cheap place to stay, they sent me to the seminary, where I paid hotel prices but ate like a king. I barely made it through dinner before crashing fully clothed on the bed. Long day.

11/1 - Capua to Caserta - 11.43 miles

Since the old men had also warned me against walking to Napoli from Capua, or stopping anywhere in between, I heeded their advice, and headed eastward instead to Caserta, planning a walk from there to Napoli the next day. As it was the first of November, I was joined on the road by everyone else for All Saints' Day, a huge celebration in this still very pious part of the country. Accompanied by heavy traffic, short spells of rain, and near constant honking, I reached Caserta, the capital of the Province, with relative ease. Funny how eleven miles is a walk in the park to me now.

Taking advantage of my early arrival, I found my way to the Palazzo Reale, a gigantic Baroque complex from the Bourbon dynasty days. Behind this building was a massive sprawling garden, and I thought about going but since it was raining hard, decided to eat lunch first. The rain stopped by the time I had finished lunch, but I was sorely disappointed to find that the gardens had closed, this being the first day of early closures (for winter). Sad to have missed what looked like a truly beautiful garden, I went to find a hotel, and after seeing that all my choices were equally poor and expensive, picked the last one I visited.

It was from Caserta that I wrote my "not in Kansas anymore" post, and I must admit that I was a bit overwhelmed by all I had encountered. The rules had changed down here, and now it was time for me to enter the mouth of the lion - Napoli.