Thoughts from our trip to Turin and Milan

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24th March 2008 - Last day in Turin

Church of Gran Madre on the banks of the River Po in TurinWell, it's our last day in Turin. And it's been a lovely little weekend away. In contrast to our previous two weekends away in Germany and Belgium and Luxembourg the weather this time was fantastic. Third time lucky perhaps?

We didn't actually do that much today as we wanted to take it easy. But we did walk around town - down to the banks of the River Po. We did walk down Via Po and into the very impressive Vittorio Veneto which just kind of opens up in front of you creating a dramatic visual effect as your eyes are led up the square and over the Po to the Church of Gran Madre on the other side of the river.

The Church of Gran Madre is constructed parallel to the River Po and was constructed to commerate the return of the king Vittorio Emanuele I (May 20th, 1814), after the defeat of Napoleon. As one walks up the stairs to this neo-Classical construction a statue on the right depicts Religion while Faith is depicted on the left. The simplicity of the neo-Classical style of Gran Madre is in quite stark contrast to much more exuberant styles of Turins Baroque churches such as the Real Chiesa di San Lorenzo.

This, our first trip to Turin, came about through and article in that well known travel publication Financial Times - the print version of which I religously read every weekend. Recent coverage in the FT included the exhbition about the Savoys in La Venaria Reale and, therefore, the entire impetus for the trip.

Today we spent quietly in Turin, spurning somewhat the intesive sightseeing of recent days. Instead we took our time around the coffee shops around the Po River and some of the bookshops which are dotted along Via Po. Many of the shops were closed today but the lack of activity made for a somewhat relaxing time in town and a generally convivial time in the coffee shops.

In general we found the town once famous for its production of Fiat cars to be much more historical important than we had previously realised. As Turin is not on the the classical "Grand Tour" route from the Lombard Lakes through Milan to Venice, Florence, Rome and Pompeii I suspect it has been somewhat overlooked by tourists over the years. Which seems to be evidenced by the lack of English language menus which are prevelant in other Italian cities. But it is all the more real for it. A real working city with a genuine history which is, perhaps like the locals, somewhat understated. But all the better for it. Like many places I've visited previously where I've had very pleasant encounters with the locals, I hope to return to Turin in the near future.

Arcades in TurinTurins regal past as base for the House of Savoy and on-time capital of Italy is self-evident from it's lengthy arcading, palaces, large squares and Baroque style churches. Turin, central Turin at least, is a compact city with most of the attractions of interest to tourist within walking distance of each other. The compactness and richness of Turin and a much more relaxed atmosphere than, say Rome, I cannot recommend Turin enough as a getaway destination.

The next time someone tells you the FT's boring - give them the weekend edition and ask them to plan a weekend away.

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