DAY 23; June 10: St Christina - Piancenza (18km - 12 miles - 317 total)

So today started out bad and I lost all my energy for the walk. Bad nights sleep ( the last place I stayed was over teen center) followed by the first 4 miles through tall wet grass, I was so annoyed and soppy , especially as I had no coffee yet.

This only got worse when I stepped in a hole; I sank below my knee is some culvert and am extremely lucky that I did not get hurt. So today my internal WHINING METER is going berserk.

I want to go home. I want to be clean. I want clean clothes. I want a hamburger on the grill. I want air conditioning.

WOW I am such a whiner. About this time, I am sitting in a piazza in front of a church inChignolo Po, and its obvious kids are gathering for some sort of field trip - looks like a beach or pool outing. Anyway, I can tell I am a subject of interest...some alien visitor. A five year old boy works up the courage to approach me, and i think asks me what I am. When I tell him an American and a cowboy from Texas, he runs back to his friends and I am engulfed by a few kids wanting to know what this pelligrini stuff is about...and wheres my horse and gun.

Later I had already decided to train the second half od day as it is into a large city with 12 miles with mo breaks just industiral areas...so a light day except for the crappy start. Pretty fancy train station above - eh?

A demani...