I recently returned from a trip to the Basilica Santuario di Maria Santissima Addolorata, in the town of Castelpetroso, in the province of Isernia, in the magnificent region of Molise. I want to say that what I followed was a perfect itinerary but I can’t do that for a couple of reasons.

First, the trip was largely unplanned and it was the unplanned nature of the gita that really made it special. I could say do this and do that, go here and go there, and you could do that, and it would be fine, but who knows what alchemy lies in chance, including elements like the weather, what is open when, et cetera.