My journey to The Climate Pilgrimage began last Wednesday on October 24th. I left Dublin by ferry for Wales and from there took numerous trains to Assisi, Italy.
The climate pilgrims passed through Assisi weeks ago on their journey from Rome and I knew I wanted to visit there as part of this trip. It's the home of St. Francis, patron of the environment and creation, Saint of peace. A flight to Rome is cheap as chips but I had decided that on this occasion I would not fly. We all know the 'inconvenient truth' of the impact of flying on the environment and when you start to read into the facts it's actually quite disturbing. I'm no expert on CO2 calculators or on the aviation industry so I'll just leave a few interesting links for you here: www.dw.com/en/to-fly-or-not-to-fly-the-environmental-cost-of-air-travel/a-42090155 and here:
www.wanderlust.co.uk/content/to-fly-or-not-to-fly/
One fact which blew my mind is that in 2017 only three per cent of the global population flew yet we flew 3.6 billion times. Three per cent!!! Only 18% of the world's population have ever been in a plane. Once again it brings home the fact that the wealthiest of the world contribute the most to climate change.
It's unlikely that any of us are about to sacrifice our travel plans in the near future, nor is this about piling guilt trips on people. But maybe we could think about how often we fly and what the alternatives are. According to the above article by Wanderlust, Eurostar claim that a flight from London to Paris emits ten times more carbon per person per flight than their service from St. Pancras to Gare du Nord. My epic adventure last week was a long one I'll admit, I arrived into Assisi on Friday morning, but it was extremely enjoyable. Now there are a number of factors involved in order to take this option. I'm in the privilaged position at present to have the time to do this. Also I'm not one to shy away from a bit of an adventure.
My journey started bright and early when my lovely house mate Sarah kindly dropped me to Dublin Port (thanks Sarah, although it wasn't so bright outside!). I was in Holyhead in Wales by 11.30am and in the
centre of London at 4.30pm. For people in Ireland travelling to the UK it's certainly worth considering this as an option. The following morning I took the Eurostar to Paris and an overnight train to Milan. From there a couple more trains to Assisi.
Here my top ten perks of sail and rail in Europe:
1. You don't have to deal with airports, which will eat up half your day anyway.
2. It takes TIME. This is a good thing. You have no option but to SLOW THINGS DOWN. Ommmm
3. You see so much more countryside, coastline, sea, scenery, nature. . . It's good for the soul.
4. You meet far more people than you would on a flight. I counted ten people that I had full conversations with between Dublin and Assisi. That just doesn't happen on a flight. I was able to share with them about The Climate Pilgrimage and not all of them thought I was mad.
5. You can work in a much more comfortable way on the ferry and on trains.
6. It is ten times less damaging to the environment. (See articles above). You might be the eco warrior of the village but as soon as you buy a flight it's very hard to catch up that carbon count.
7. It's far less hassel... no two hour prior show up; no long security queues.
8. It is way more comfortable than a plane.
9. The journey is a destination in itself (probably a quote from somewhere).
10. You get a real sense of a country and you end up being dropped off in the middle of the city, not ten miles outside the city.
Just a few thoughts on the pilgrimage before the pilgrimage. I know we are all addicted to busy, myself included, and are unlikely to stop flying and trying to get 'there' as fast as possible anytime soon. But it is worth asking "do I really have to?"
Any downsides? The only downside was the loud snorer in the cabin on the overnight train from Paris to Milan. It always happens when you can't find the earplugs that are at the bottom of your rucksack. God bless her anyway. (Not the sentiments I used at the time!) Snore on!
One fact which blew my mind is that in 2017 only three per cent of the global population flew yet we flew 3.6 billion times. Three per cent!!! Only 18% of the world's population have ever been in a plane. Once again it brings home the fact that the wealthiest of the world contribute the most to climate change.
It's unlikely that any of us are about to sacrifice our travel plans in the near future, nor is this about piling guilt trips on people. But maybe we could think about how often we fly and what the alternatives are. According to the above article by Wanderlust, Eurostar claim that a flight from London to Paris emits ten times more carbon per person per flight than their service from St. Pancras to Gare du Nord. My epic adventure last week was a long one I'll admit, I arrived into Assisi on Friday morning, but it was extremely enjoyable. Now there are a number of factors involved in order to take this option. I'm in the privilaged position at present to have the time to do this. Also I'm not one to shy away from a bit of an adventure.
My journey started bright and early when my lovely house mate Sarah kindly dropped me to Dublin Port (thanks Sarah, although it wasn't so bright outside!). I was in Holyhead in Wales by 11.30am and in the
Here my top ten perks of sail and rail in Europe:
1. You don't have to deal with airports, which will eat up half your day anyway.
2. It takes TIME. This is a good thing. You have no option but to SLOW THINGS DOWN. Ommmm
3. You see so much more countryside, coastline, sea, scenery, nature. . . It's good for the soul.
4. You meet far more people than you would on a flight. I counted ten people that I had full conversations with between Dublin and Assisi. That just doesn't happen on a flight. I was able to share with them about The Climate Pilgrimage and not all of them thought I was mad.
5. You can work in a much more comfortable way on the ferry and on trains.
6. It is ten times less damaging to the environment. (See articles above). You might be the eco warrior of the village but as soon as you buy a flight it's very hard to catch up that carbon count.
7. It's far less hassel... no two hour prior show up; no long security queues.
9. The journey is a destination in itself (probably a quote from somewhere).
10. You get a real sense of a country and you end up being dropped off in the middle of the city, not ten miles outside the city.
Just a few thoughts on the pilgrimage before the pilgrimage. I know we are all addicted to busy, myself included, and are unlikely to stop flying and trying to get 'there' as fast as possible anytime soon. But it is worth asking "do I really have to?"
Any downsides? The only downside was the loud snorer in the cabin on the overnight train from Paris to Milan. It always happens when you can't find the earplugs that are at the bottom of your rucksack. God bless her anyway. (Not the sentiments I used at the time!) Snore on!
"It cannot be emphasised enough how everything is interconnected...When we speak of the environment what we really mean is a relationship existing between nature and the society which lives in it." (Laudato Si, 138-9)
Www.theclimatepilgrimage.com
Facebook: @theclimatepilgrimage
Twitter: #theclimatepilgrimage
Love this Jane! I'm super inspired.
ReplyDelete