So far, I had spent a good deal of time touring Genoa, my grandma's hometown. Another goal was to visit Turin, home of the 2006 Winter Olympics and homeland of my grandfather -- Carlo Guiseppe Cargni (below left, with my grandma at my parents' wedding in May, 1952).
I never had the opportunity to really know my grandfather because I was about a year old when he died in 1953, but he was an adventurer in his youth, leading caravans over the Alps to France. At 6'2 with reddish hair, he didn't look like most of the others in the Italian army.
After one false start, missing the train by 10 minutes, I finally made the trip on Thursday, September 16.
The two-hour train ride from Genoa, took me through Alessandra and Asti in the province of Piedmont, known for its agriculture, particularly wine grapes and corn. Torino is Italy's fourth largest city with nearly one million inhabitants.
Besides the architecture, museums and many sculptures throughout the city like this one (right) on the elaborate bridge over the Po River along Corso Vittorio Emmauele III, Torino is perhaps best known for the "Shroud of Turin," the burial cloth of Jesus Christ.
Possibly the greatest icon of faith in the Roman Catholic Church, the cloth features the image of a crucified human body, including thorn wounds on the forehead and nail wounds on both wrists and feet.
Spending about four hours in the city, I visited the "Parco Valentino," a beautiful wooded preserve along the Po River (above) and the "Monte Dei Cappuccini" (below), which features the Church of Santa Maria del Monte and Museo Nazionale della Montagna, as well as a spectacular view of Torino.
After one false start, missing the train by 10 minutes, I finally made the trip on Thursday, September 16.
Besides the architecture, museums and many sculptures throughout the city like this one (right) on the elaborate bridge over the Po River along Corso Vittorio Emmauele III, Torino is perhaps best known for the "Shroud of Turin," the burial cloth of Jesus Christ.
Housed in the city's cathedral, the shroud draws millions of Catholic pilgrims when it is periodically displayed.
Possibly the greatest icon of faith in the Roman Catholic Church, the cloth features the image of a crucified human body, including thorn wounds on the forehead and nail wounds on both wrists and feet.
I would not see the shroud; only the Pope and the Bishop of Turin can decide when the sacred cloth will next be displayed, which won't be soon.
The last opportunity to see the Holy Shroud was in 2000, and its next appearance isn't slated until 2025.
Torino is also famous for the "slow food movement," which is based on the premise of enjoying the simplicities of life, the antithesis of the the lifestyle in Portofino, where the pleasure boats start at about one million euros. In Torino, it's more about "voluntary simplicity."
Spending about four hours in the city, I visited the "Parco Valentino," a beautiful wooded preserve along the Po River (above) and the "Monte Dei Cappuccini" (below), which features the Church of Santa Maria del Monte and Museo Nazionale della Montagna, as well as a spectacular view of Torino.
At a local eatery, I enjoyed a "ulisse," which seemed to be a ham and cheese sandwich on sourdough bread. Puzzled, I texted my brother Robert in Philadelphia about the nature of the sandwich. Turns out I had just eaten a "hero" (think "Ulysses") sandwich. It was "bene."
After a good half-day in Torino, not counting the four hours total on trains, I returned to Genoa late in the day, but in time for cocktail hour and apertivos at the Cafe Barbarossa.
2 comments:
THIS IS GREAT! I love it. I wish I had been with you.
Thanks, babe.
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