Otago Humanities graduate finding meaning in walking ancient routes

Jennifer Andrewes is an Otago alumna who has undertaken three pilgrimages since receiving a diagnosis of early-onset Parkinson’s, with plans to continue these quests along ancient routes.

“I’m a convert to the power of walking. It’s addictive. Out on the road, just me, my backpack and my wits, I am my best self. I love the fact that you head out each day into the unknown, with literally no idea of what is around the next corner,” Jennifer says.

Her diagnosis and a broader realisation that ‘life is short – if there’s something you want to do, don’t wait’, prompted her to attempt to walk off the symptoms of her neurological condition, starting with the 800km Voie du Puy (via Podiensis) from Le Puy-en-Velay to Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port in the Pyrenees in 2022.  The following year she walked the 1000km Voie de Vézelay (via Lemovicensis) from Vézelay in Burgundy to Saint-Jean.

These two pilgrimages and her experiences with this neurological condition are the subject of a book Jennifer has just published: A will and a way, on foot across France.

She’s since undertaken a third pilgrimage walking the Via Francigena from Canterbury to Rome last year, covering 2409km over 110 days across four countries and in three languages.

Jennifer recently visited Ōtepoti to speak to the Otago Tramping and Mountaineering Club, and the local branch of Alliance Française about her experiences of walking generally, and specifically the Via Francigena from Canterbury to Rome.

This month she is heading to Spain with a small group of Otago Tramping and Mountaineering Club members, to walk the 1200km Via de la Plata from Cadiz through Seville to Santiago de Compostela.

Jennifer says learning languages at Otago has been central to everything she has done in life. While being multilingual was helpful when she worked in tourism, initially in Dunedin and then Wellington, it has also been enriching even when it has not always been central to her work.

“Being multi-lingual has allowed me to connect, communicate and share experiences with people all round the world that have enriched my life.

“After leaving Otago I was awarded a French Government scholarship to teach English in a high school in Dunkerque in the north of France, where I made lifelong friends. Walking back through Dunkerque on my long pilgrimage to Rome last year was an emotional experience, with a feeling of having come full circle.”

Jennifer has also seen her studies in history bring some core skills to her life and career.

“The core skills I learned in history – sociology, perspective, philosophy, context, the nature of ‘truth’, critical thinking, clear and compelling storytelling – have all served me well in my career working in Parliament, central and local government in New Zealand and the UK.”

You can find her book and blog on her website