Two months in Torino

The Savoy Castle in Montcalieri (just outside the town, take bus 45); the gelato shop near the Montcalieri bus stop (ask about the Tizziana ice cream - it's named after one of the girls that works in the shop); the shops on Via Roma (one gelato place on Via Roma has rose flavored gelato, ask for a sample); the park on the River Po; the St. John the Baptist Festival with fireworks on June 24 (we got an Italian version of the elephant ear that was quite interesting).

Quick Tips:

You'll need to know some basic Italian to get around in Turin, though you can survive with just a phrasebook. There are not many tourists, so not a lot of people speak English.

The City of Torino has a great website (in english) with lots of information and pictures, and there is a website on the 2006 Olympic Games to be held in Turin.

Best Way To Get Around:

Take the train into the Puorto Nuova station and take the bus system throughout the city. Taxis are readily available, but unless you have too many bags to take the bus, I suggest the bus.

The Shamrock is about 5 blocks down from Porta Nuova (facing the main entrance, head to your left) and across the street. This was our local hangout. We spent most Thursday & Friday nights here. It's an Irish pub, and it was full of local "20-somethings". Unlike most Italian clubs, there was no cover charge so we would come, sip a few beers and chat with some English speaking locals. We had one guy in our group who spoke fluent Italian, so he was a help with some of the locals, but there were usually a handful of people in the bar who spoke English, and the bartender at the upstairs bar was very nice. He was originally from Australia, so we talked to him quite a bit. Get there early - about 10:30 or so (this is early by Italian standards, considering they usually finish dinner around 9:00), the place fills up around midnight and it will be hard to find a place to sit. I don't know if she still works there, but Alessandra was our favorite bartender/waitress.

In Italy, each town has a patron saint. St. John the Baptist is the patron saint of Turin. June 24th is "John the Baptist day" so don't make any major plans in Turin that day, since everything is closed. There is a parade in the morning, lots of activities in the city like concerts at various churches, neighborhood parties, and a big festival on the River at Parco Valentine and Parco Vittorio Emmanuele. Surprisingly, their festival was much like a typical American festival with food booths, games, etc. Poke around through it, mix with the locals, relax & enjoy the day. The best part of the festival is in the evening when there is a big fireworks display overlooking the Po river. Watch the fireworks while eating an Italian version of the elephant ear (which is quite good, if not really that much like an American elephant ear.)

Moncalieri has a patron saint day (I forget the name of their saint) a few days before. They had a wonderful free concert in the church in the main piazza, then followed that up with a fireworks display from the hill and then a stage with clowns in the square.

One of the best Egyptian museums outside of Cairo. Much of the collection was accumulated by the Savoys. The museum has over 30,000 exhibits. English speaking guides are available if arranged beforehand (there may be guides available if you didn't make arrangements in advance, or there may not be). There may be pre-programmed audioguides as well, but I am not sure of this. We had a pre-arranged tour, so I didn't need to check that option out. Lots of artifacts, statues, sarcophagi, and some wrapped (and unwrapped - ugh) mummies. Very interesting, though our guide went into a LOT of detail and it got repetitive near the end. As with most museums in Italy, it is closed Mondays.

This is a great park on the River Po. There is a medieval village on the river with little shops in it that sell jewlery, etc. Wander through the shops to see the beautiful (and the not so beautiful) treasures. Visit the fountain of the seasons. Find the statue of your birth month and have someone take a picture of you in front of it (for an added flair, pose like the statue). Take a walk along the river. Explore the garden area. Get a drink from one of the "bull" fountains found all over the park (and Turin itself). Watch all the Italians walking their little dogs. Or laze away the afternoon by finding a sunny spot (or shady if it's really hot) and just taking a nap for a while.

This church houses the famed Shroud of Turin, the cloth that Christ was supposedly buried in. Whether or not this is a religious relic to you, if you happen to be in Turin when the shroud is being displayed, it is worth a look. It was last shown in 2000 for the Jubilee Year in the Catholic Church. Before that it was shown in spring of 1998, and before that it was back in the 1960s or 1970s! I arrived in Turin during the last week of its showing in 1998, and had the opportunity to see it. The shroud itself is relatively small, and is protected behind plexiglass. I know that carbon dating has said that this likely isn't Christ's burial cloth, but it's a sight to see nonetheless. The mix of people viewing it was amazing. There was a group of school kids on a field trip, lots of older Italian ladies, and people from many different countries who made a pilgramage to see the shroud. I don't know when the next showing will be, as they just showed it for the 2000 Jubilee. Perhaps in 2006 when the winter Olympics come to Turin?

Stupinigi is the summertime hunting palace of the Savoys. Set on what used to be the outskirts of town (now it's out close to the mall), this vast summertime estate is an immense monument to the power of the Savoys. The rooms are beautifully decorated, despite the fact that much of the original furniture is missing. The center of the palace is a grand ballroom, and if you close your eyes you can just imagine all the social functions that went on in the room. Part of the palace is closed to the public, which makes the size of the place even more amazing.

You can catch bus 66 out to the palace, just ask the driver for "Stupinigi", and he'll tell you where to get off. When you are waiting for the bus after you've seen the place, you can grab a gelato at the little restaurant across the street.

Pietro Micca is an Italian heroic figure. He was a soldier in one of the many wars against France back in the 1700s & 1800s. In these wars, the French were outside the city and had Turin under siege with cannons. Someone in the Italian army came up with idea of digging tunnels out from the city to underneath where the French cannons were. Soldiers would dig the tunnels, and would locate the French cannons by watching beans bounce (when the beans bounced straight up when a cannon fired versus moving right or left, they knew they were underneath a cannon).

Once the cannons were located, the soldiers would set explosives at the end of the tunnel, run a fuse as far as they could and then light it. If the tunnel was dug correctly, the explosion would shoot straight upward and take out the French cannon above. This was in theory. In practice, this was very dangerous work. If the tunnel was dug too shallow, the ground would cave in under the weight of the armies above. Often, the explosion would shoot back down the tunnel, rather than straight up, and would kill the soldiers before they could get safely out of the way.

Pietro Micca was one of the soldiers in charge of the tunnels. I can't remember the whole story, but basically, he saved many lives when the French discovered the tunnels by lighting explosions in the tunnels as the French were invading them. He was killed in the process, but his actions stopped the French and gave Piedmont the victory.

In the museum, a guide takes you down under the city into some of the actual tunnels that were used during the war. Many of the tunnels have been excavated, and it is believed the spot has been found where Pietra Micca actually died. This is a very interesting slice of history, and it's quite an experience to be under the city. Bring a jacket, as the tunnels are cool. Even if it's 90+ degrees outside, the tunnels are around 60 degrees. Ask for an English speaking guide, so you can hear the story for yourself.

This was my favorite market in all of Turin. Every Friday the main streets of the historic Moncalieri area were converted to a market. My Italian politics class usually let out about 11 am on Fridays, so I would stop by the apartment and drop off my books, then head out the door to the market (our apartment was only a half block from the main market area). I would buy my produce for the next week - apricots, apples, a few bananas (very expensive in Europe since they are shipped from S. America), fresh tomatoes, lettuce, maybe some stems of asparagus or an eggplant. Then it was on to the cheese stand for some fresh mozzarella and parmesan-reggiano, and a carton of six eggs. Bread I picked up from the local bakery each morning (often a small circle of focaccia pomodoro for lunch, and hard rolls for dinner).

Once I had the produce, I'd make a quick stop by the apartment to put it all away, then it was back to the market. I'd wander through the stalls selling T-shirts, lace, umbrellas, shoes, dresses, luggage, tapes of old American pop stars, even underwear! I'd look for souveniers for my family and friends, a dress to wear to the opera, shoes to wear with my new skirt, etc. I didn't pay more than $20 for anything (including a pair of Italian leather sandals), however purchase could add up fast if you're not careful. There were lots of very cute wrap-around skirts, nice sweaters and great shoes.

If you're in Turin on Friday, catch the #45 bus down Via Massimo D'Azeglio to Moncalieri (get off at the first stop across the bridge over the Po), grab a gelato (a major requirement for any adventure in Italy) at the shop at the bottom of the hill and wander the market for a few hours.