Donkey Work on the Way of St. James (262/268)

Donkey Work on the Way of St. James (262/268)

Nicole Grasser decides to travel the Way of St. James in France on a donkey. The film that results is both an exploration of a little known region of France and the story of a blossoming friendship between one woman and her donkey.

Donkeys are one of the oldest domesticated animals in the world. For millennia, people have used donkeys for transportation and as beasts of burden. 2,000 years ago Jesus chose to ride a donkey into Jerusalem. So what's good enough for Jesus is surely good enough for the Way of St. James. At least that's what Nicole Grasser was thinking when she decided to do just that - to take a hired donkey along the French Via Podiensis, the most famous Way of St. James in France. This pilgrim covered 230 kilometers in ten days with her donkey Wappa - from Le Puys-en-Velais in the picturesque Auvergne region over the rugged, wild uplands of the Aubrac to the magical town of Conques. The film follows her journey through a part of France that is largely unknown; where bison, wolves and unique birds of prey still roam, and where the few residents remaining make their living from breeding a particular type of cattle. And where the donkey is still very much part of everyday life. It also shows that the stereotype that donkeys are stubborn and stupid does not reflect reality. Quite the opposite: Wappa the donkey proves to be a wonderful companion with whom to share this adventure. A film about the magnificent wildlife of France and the beginning of a lifelong friendship between one woman and her donkey.

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