Last Friday I headed over to Torino to meet up with Sandy and Rupert who have been doing a bit of Europe. It was one of Sandy's last days in Europe so was nice to be able to see her and get a farewell that we both missed back home!
Clearly I am to be plagued by disasters as I travel through Europe (or maybe just in Italy, and for those who this comment doesn't make sense please read the previous post)! I thought I would be smart and catch an early train to ensure we could have plenty of time to hang out in Torino and to see this city, but this idea was trampled about an hour into the train trip. While I could not understand the announcement, I did recognise that the voice mentioned "trenta minuti," meaning that we would be waiting for 30 minutes, giving me plenty of time to view the lovely scenery in the middle of nowhere that we had stopped. After about an hour of sitting there doing nothing, the train proceeded to continue onto Torino, molto lentamente (very slowly) and I arrived an hour late. All was good in the end as we managed to meet up and visit some beautiful palaces and ruins. Torino is such a lovely city, so old and well preserved I just wanted to stare at every building that we passed!
We spent the day wandering through museums, palaces, churches- just relaxing. There was an amazing photographic exhibit inside the Palazzo Reale showcasing images of Italy and Italians in the modern era. For a country so focused on their history, it was nice to be able to see them promoting their modern culture. One of the other major attractions of Torino is the Shroud of Jesus. Kept locked up in the Duomo di Torino, there is a smaller model on display that people can look at. Much controversy surrounds the actuality of the shroud, but nevertheless it was to the Duomo we headed to have a peek. With so much history in the town, we headed on a bit of a Roman-ruins hunt. The Porta Palatina (Roman Gate) has been really well conserved, and stands alone near the Duomo. We didn't get right up close to the gate, with the ground still covered in snow and ice it was a bit difficult to walk through it. All around the area there are a variety of ruins and sites that have been uncovered, with the remains of the Roman theatre being repaired right near the Duomo. Many ruins have been incorporated into other buildings in Torino so it was really interesting to be able to see some parts of Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque spread throughout the city.
After a long day and a rush to catch the train home, I almost fell asleep during the ride! It was nice to escape from Milano for a day, but also good to return home. While Milano is by no means a big city compared to Sydney, it is so much bigger and busier than other cities in Italy that visiting anywhere outside of it feels like a temporary vacation. Hopefully more of them to occur soon!
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