From Here to Jerusalem

I'm Anja and this is my harp Sean. We are attempting to walk from West Cork to Jerusalem starting on the 2nd of April 2022. 

Yes, you hear me right, I'm walking while Sean (in all his 26 string glory) is being carried by me from West Cork to Jerusalem. 

By the end of it we will have been on the road for just over a year and have travelled anywhere between 6000km and 8000km on foot and hopefully have played and sung for as many people along our route as we possibly can. 

I know it sounds outrageous but it's not the first time we've done something like this. In 2010 we walked from West Cork to Santiago de Compostela (2500km) and in 2018 we walked from West Cork to Rome (3500km) and now I feel the time has come to attempt the big one.

This last journey though comes with a whole set of new challenges to the ones we walked before, there's a lot more countries to cross with an array of languages we do not speak, in all types of extreme conditions from very hot to very cold and I cannot even start to think about the strain my body is going to go through, given Sean's weight and then the rest of my pack which will weigh around 20kg.

So as you can imagine I need help. A lot of help. Help that will range from making sure the harp is protected adequately to looking after my feet and body, finding places to rest and recover (something I didn't do on the other journeys) to making sure I have enough time to connect and play for those we meet along the way.

And so that's where you come in. I need your help to make sure we have the best chance of making this journey successful. Did we do the other two walks on a day by day basis, trusting in the willingness of those along the road to help us, this walk is so big that we'd like to share it with as many as we can with the help of ad many who are willing to be part of it.

Sharing the story of our journey was central to our last journey to Rome. I did live updates daily for those we left behind and I would like to do that on this journey also.

My commitment will be to walk and play daily. Witness the world we pass through and do daily livestream updates of that journey. 

If you've read this far I'm already very very grateful, thank you for being interested in our story, our journey and thank you for considering helping me achieve my dream of connecting my lovely hometown to the great pilgrim paths of the European Middle Ages. I'm beyond grateful for any help you can give me. 

Thank you.

If you're interested in the video diaries you can find them on:

https://youtube.com/@AnjaBakkertheflautingharper

And there's also a website/blog

http://www.theflautingharper.com

(there's still work being done so please be patient with me)