A Contemplative-Culinary-Cultural Pilgrimage To Little-Known Italy
Since 2018, I have spent several extended stays in Italy for both work and pleasure. Those times transformed me. Italians seem to have a natural ability to live in a more contemplative way and focus on what brings us joy. My Italian friends taught me to appreciate the sanctity of sharing a meal. They urged me to prize quality over quantity. They introduced me to the practice of building community through chiacchiera, the tradition of chit-chat that goes on daily in cafes, on street corners and park benches.
They convinced this chronic workaholic that there is a time to work and a time to stop work. And they taught me to value personal relationships over my professional achievements.
I’ve long wanted to share with others the more contemplative aspects of life in Italy — and now that chance has arrived. This spring from May 9–22, I will be guiding a retreat-pilgrimage that will offer others a chance to experience life as it is lived in what I call “the real Italy.”
Our home base will be the charming Medieval town of Guardiagrele in the south-central region of Abruzzo, one of the the most beautiful parts of the country. Yet this is a region of Italy still little-known to tourists.
I am calling the retreat “Benedictine Footprints: A Contemplative, Culinary, Cultural Experience of Little-Known Italy” for two reasons. First, we will visit important, but still little-known Benedictine sites, following in the footsteps of those who passed there centuries ago. At the same time, we will be adding our contemporay footsteps to those of the past, demonstrating that the Benedictine values of community, consensus-building, hospitality, humility, prayer and praise are as essential as ever in today’s world.
The retreat will be much more though. We will have a chance to experience life as it is lived by Italians in small towns across the country.
The places we will visit include:
- The Oratorio San Pellegrino in the Santa Maria Assunta Church of Bominaco, described by art historians as “the Sistine chapel of Abruzzo” because of its frescoes painted by 13th century Benedictine monks.
- The dramatic gorges and springs of Mount Maiella, where we will also visit the amazing 9th century ruin of a Benedictine monastery.
- An ancient hermitage called Eremo Di Santo Spirito that is still operating and built literally into a mountainside.
- The scenic beach coast along the Adriatic sea.
I am especially excited, though, to show you daily life in Italy and introduce you to many of the wonderful people I’ve met in this region of the country. As part of our retreat:
- We will spend time with Nunzio Marcelli, one of Europe’s last remaining mountain shepherds, who will share his deeply spiritual take on raising sheep. We will also get a chance to sample the famous Pecorino of Abruzzo cheese he makes.
- We will enjoy a wine and cheese tasting with culinary specialist Leila Caramanico on the site of a vineyard begun by Benedictine monks centuries ago.
- We will enjoy seafood specialties in one of the traditional Trabocchi fishing huts that stands on stilts in the waters of the Adriatic (an experience unique to Abruzzo’s shoreline).
- We will witness a colorful religious procession and Medieval reenactment during the annual Festival of San Nicola Greco, a patron saint of Guardiagrele.
- And, we will receive a cooking lesson from an authentic Italian Mama; participate in a cheese-making workshop; shop for bargains in Guardiagrele’s Sunday outdoor market, and sample the award-winning Tre Monti pastries that have been made by the same family for generations.
Helping me to organize the retreat is Dr. Jessica Sciubba, who was my Italian professor at Illinois State University. Jessica was born and raised in Guardiagrele and also oversees ISU’s summer study program in Italy.
Because this is a reteat as well as a pilgrimage, there will be ample time for prayer and contemplation. You will be well cared-for in the Benedictine tradition of hospitality!
We have worked to keep the cost of the retreat very reasonable, and far less costly than trips of similar duration. All of your transportation needs in Italy will be included as well as several meals and your accommodations in either apartments or rooms with private baths in a B&B that includes a shared veranda overlooking a main piazza. Cost is $3,070 per person for a single and $2,600 per person for a couple sharing a room.
We plan to keep the number on the retreat to a maximum of 15 so that people can get to know each other and have ample time for sharing.
If you are interested, please contact me via my website, www.judithvalente.com. I will email you the complete itinerary and further details on the journey.
The Irish poet and theologian John O’Donohue has written, “Always in a pilgrimage, there is a change of mind and a change of heart.” I look forward to having the privilege of making this journey of the heart with you and sharing my love for Italy and its people.
Mille grazie e buon viaggio a tutti! Many thanks and good travels to all!
