If you have never heard of Turin or Torino and you have no clue about it, or if you haven't been here yet, after reading this post by our friends the independent people, Xavier and Valeriia, you will simply want to teleport here!
Xavier and Valeriia, a couple of cyclists, dancers and photographers explorers are living the expatriation experience, currently in England. On their mission to discover hidden or little-known spots of Europe and prove that there is no need to go too far for some genuine treasures. You can read them on their blog Independent People and follow their adventures on Twitter and Instagram
Turin Rocks
When talking about Italy, Turin is never mentioned as a must-visit spot. Moreover, Turin looks everything but the way we like to imagine Italian cities. Lazy sunny afternoons, wine and a bowl of pasta in a typical Mediterranean scenery - no, let’s not confuse Turin with Naples. Even despite being one of the biggest city of Italy, Turin is not the first destination for tourists.
Probably, that was one of the reasons to travel there – to discover an Italian town, which falls out of the standard clichés. Four days in Turin and we didn’t regret anything. Let us browse together 10 reasons why Turin rocks.
Not like the others
Turin stands out in many ways, one of them is a simple “Northern” spirit of the place. Turin’s proximity to the Alps completely removes the Mediterranean touch so beloved by Italy fans. General organization of the city can’t be compared to any other Italian towns either, but nevertheless it’s a truly beautiful city to visit.
Architecture
Every detail matters. :) If you are attentive, there is a lot of things to discover.
The Alps
Turin’s skyline has the most beautiful element, that makes it so special – the chain of the Alps. This region is called Piedmont which literally means “at the foot of the mountains” – and indeed, it does not take more than an hour to reach the mountains. This is one of the reasons why in 2006 Turin hosted the Winter Olympic Games.
Say “hello” to Martini, Lavazza, Nutella and Fiat
The names that sound familiar to everybody come from Turin itself!
Smartly industrial
North of Italy is a rich area in general, but a large part of Italian industry is concentrated in Piedmont. They managed to overcome the European industrial crisis and maintain local factories on a high level.
Slow Food
Over the past years, the term “Slow Food” has become popular. As a consequence to the widely spread notion of “fast food” came its opposite – slow food. It means focusing on enjoying a delicious meal made from tasty and high quality local products. As you might have guessed, this movement also started in Turin. Various little shops and restaurants (like Eataly) propose local products only which are damn tasty.
Cuisine of Piedmont
Food, even more food! Apart from high quality local products, there is another thing – authentic cuisine of Piedmont. Delicious chestnut sauces, beef tongue, beef in a tuna sauce and truffles – piedmont specialties are absolutely no worse than in the rest of Italy. By the way, among all wines of Italy, it’s Piedmont whose wines are considered as the best ones, among them the famous Barolo.
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| Porta Palazzo market, the largest open air market in Europe |
Places you didn’t expect to see
Turin possesses a great number of fascinating museums – Egypt museum, Cinema museum that is located inside the iconic building of the city (the Mole), and the Car museum (MAUTO) honoring the world famous automobile industry of Turin. What stroke us the most, however, was a Test Track in the former Lingotto Fiat factory. The production was moved to another factory, further from the center, but this astonishing test track on the roof of the building remained until these days. Definitely worth seeing – it’s absolutely breathe taking, especially at dawn.
Tramways and city lights
Tramways and bicycles make Turin special, but wait till you see it by night...
To sum it up, 4 days in Turin were everything but a waste of time. Add some amazingly beautiful villages of Piedmont in Turin’s area and be sure – you won’t regret it.
... and if you can speak French... you will easily get by 😉
by
Xavier and Valeriia
www.independentpeople.net
Follow Xavier and Valeriia's adventures on their:
- Blog Independent People
- Twitter @2independentppl
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