Piemonte:
Torino:
I spent two four month periods in 2008 and 2009 in Torino, Italy – the original capital of the Republic of Italy. This is my favorite city in the world at the moment. I fell in love with it in 2008 so much that I wanted to go back again the next year and do it all over again! Let me preface this by saying that A.) this may be outdated since I notice that the subway lines have been drastically improved since my visit there, so I may not be helpful in the public transit portion and B.) I spent a total of eight months here, traveling the city most weekends (school on the weekdays) so I would say my knowledge of the city is pretty extensive; because of this, I will just highlight some of the must see things in Torino.
Starting in the center of town would be the best option to enhance your tourist experience in Torino. In Piazza Castello, you are walking distance from almost all of the major sights in the city. Within the piazza, you can see the Royal Palace, where the Savoys used to reside as well as Madama Palace, where royalty also resided. Nowadays, Madama Palace is a museum where you can see what it is like to be royalty. The great thing about this structure is that half of it is constructed like a nice palace and the other half looks like it came out of the medieval times! You might notice, while you are rotating in awe at all the sites in Piazza Castello, that there is a very ugly skyscraper lurking over the skyline. This is “Mussolini’s Finger,” constructed by the dictator during his rule in the 30s and 40s, it is an imposing building that was an attempt to fully industrialize the city. Unfortunately, Mussolini did not last long, and this was his only addition to the Torinese skyline (thankfully!). Lastly, in the piazza, you should notice a small church off to the side of the Royal Palace – Church of San Lorenzo. If you are lucky enough (and I mean lucky, this happens about once a decade), you may be able to see the Shroud of Turin. They keep it stored so that it does not deteriorate and only show it to the public for major Catholic dates. You can go to the church still and see a replica though, along with some other cool things about the Shroud.
Now that we are finished with Piazza Castello, there are three options to choose from, depending on what you want to do. You can go down Via Garibaldi and do some shopping at several large and small shops. The street is always filled with shoppers and people selling this and that. It is quite a nice walk, going for several blocks, with something new to see at every window. Alternatively, you could venture down Via Po and make your way to Piazza Vittorio Veneto. At this huge piazza, you can walk to the river and look to this hills at the church in the distance (we’ll get there eventually). If you continue along the river, you’ll notice many clubs that you can go to that are open all night long. This is definitely the party district of the city! If you are lucky, Torino will be having a festival or concert in the piazza. I would highly recommend going when the Chocolate Festival is up and running (it is so awesome!).
Nearby Piazza Vittorio Veneto is the landmark that Torino is famous for: La Mole Antonelliana. This building, what used to be an old synagogue, was converted in to a cinema museum. The museum is awesome! It has so many cool artifacts from the world of film. The crowning point of this museum though is the ride to the top of the Mole. You take and elevator “Willy Wonka” style that shoots through the middle of the museum up to the viewing platform. The view is amazing. The sprawl of city life is before you and in the background are the beautiful Alps. You can’t get a better view than the one on top of the Mole!
Now that we’ve seen most of the big sights in Torino, it’s time to head back to Piazza Castello and this time head down Via Roma. On this street, you can visit the second largest Egyptian museum in the world. The artifacts in this place are amazing. They have mummies, sarcophagi, and trinkets from Ancient Egypt, as well as fully intact statues. Continuing down Via Roma you will enter my favorite place in the city, Piazza San Carlo. This piazza is a cozy place for you to lounge around and enjoy people watching. At the end of the piazza, there are two churches flanking the entrance. These used to be separate churches for both men and women. In the middle of the piazza is a fantastic statue that really caps off the beauty of this square.
There are a few other major spots outside of the area I took you around. I would suggest going to as many places in Torino as possible, since it is such a great city. If you take the train to Lingotto, you can visit the old Fiat factory, now a mall, and go to the roof where a test track was made for the new cars. Nearby Lingotto, you can also visit the Olympic Village and arenas from the 2006 Winter Olympic Games. On this side of town, you can also catch a Juventus or Torino F.C. match. If you are lucky enough to be there for the derby match, prepare yourself, the town goes nuts! On the other side of town, a few blocks away from Piazza Castello, you can visit Porto Palantino. This is an old Roman gate that is still largely intact. The great thing about Italy is the mixture of so many historic periods and this landmark is probably one of the oldest in the city. Lastly, I would encourage you to take the train up to the Basilica di Superga. This gigantic church dominates the hillside of Torino. From the top of the hill you can see (on a clear day) the entire city of Torino. I went during a cloudy day and could only see parts of the city, but it was sunset and the views were still breathtaking. If you go to the back of the Superga, you can pay tribute at the memorial for the Torino F.C. players that died in a horrible plane crash in the 1940s (they crashed in the back of the church, which is still unrepaired).
Now that you’ve done all the sightseeing, you may think I’ve forgotten something…food! Torino has a great reputation for several delicious items. As I mentioned before, there is a Chocolate Festival every year in the city. Torino prides itself on chocolate. Two of the most famous things in Torino are chocolate based: Il Bicerin and gianduia (what you might know as Nutella). Il Bicerin is a coffee drink that is part espresso, part hot chocolate, and part whipped cream. It’s amazing, and I’m still in awe that the only place that seems to serve it in the US is Lavazza cafes (Torino based coffee) and Eataly (Torino based Italian store). Gianduia is a staple to Torino. Every shop in every piazza has some sort of chocolate that you can buy, and 9 times out of 10, it will have that distinct hazelnut flavor. Other notable dishes in Torino include some of the more hearty meals Italy has to offer (since it’s a town tucked away in the Alps). I would recommend a gnocchi dish as well as a polenta dish especially if you intend to visit in the winter.
The bottom line is that Torino is one of the most underrated cities in the world and gets easily overshadowed by some of the bigger draws in Italy alone. It is worth a visit, even if it is only for a day or two (I would recommend at least three to four to really get the cultural experience). Writing this just makes me want to go back so much more…looks like I’ll be planning an Italian trip soon!
Grant's Great Escapes 