Italy 2014
Back to the land of our ancestors. We rented (through Airbnb) a delightful little house in the midst of a hazelnut region the Le Langhe wine region in Piemonte (Piedmont), northwest Italy. This area is renowned for its wine and truffles and is the birthplace of the Slow Food Movement. Piemonte has everything the Tuscany has (wine, food, rolling hills, art, architecture, history) but at 30-40% off on accommodations!
For anyone spending time in Torino, or several days in Piedmont region, we highly recommend the Torino + Piemonte Card, which includes free admission to almost every museum in the region, plus public transportation in Torino and possibly additional benefits (during our stay this included free tours of the FIAT factory and of a chocolate factory). You’ll recoup the cost very quickly. And unlike many other places in Italy, most museums in Torino are open continuous hours without that annoying midday break.
If visiting Torino itself we highly recommend ditching the car (if you have one) and taking the train. The heart of the city is just a few blocks from Stazione Porta Nuova station. You can’t drive anywhere, parking is expensive, and you’ll be worried about the safety of your car. We parked the car at the garage at the train station in Alba for the day (for a modest fee) – wise decision!
In very small towns in Piemonte parking is generally free. Slightly larger towns may have a fee for parking (often free during the lunch hour). Pay close attention to signs and make sure you pay the meters and put the ticket on your dashboard.
Maison Buschin, our cozy home for the week.
Our bedroom. Okay, a bedroom at Casa Cavassa, the municipal museum in Saluzzo.
Saluzzo, birthplace of Annabella’s paternal great grandfather.
Typical street in Saluzzo, which is so off the beaten tourist path that ours were the first Torino+Piemonte museum passes sold at the tourist office in 2014.
Lunch at Quattro Stagioni. The waiter was off-put when we pulled an americano and asked for the check before we’d finished our meal, but while parking is free midday, the clock was about to tick on paid parking and we weren’t up to starting our vacation with a ticket.
The wine cellar at Castello della Manta, just outside of Saluzzo and one of many castles we visited on this trip.
Palazzo Stupinigi, the hunting lodge of the Dukes of Savoy, on the outskirts of Tornio.
City of Bra. This is now the University of Gastronomic Sciences, with Roman ruins in the foreground.
Piccolo snack — Local Nebbiolo wine and regional cheeses in our own backyard.
The Sacra di San Michele, monastery that inspired Umberto Eco’s “In the Name of the Rose.” It is part of the pilgrimage path of monasteries of St. Michael, which include Normandy’s Mont St. Michel.
I guess in the middle ages they had ice in Italy, unlike now.
World’s largest grissini (breadsticks).
The town of Cherasco is known for its snails (lumache), so best to try them on pasta.
And it wouldn’t be Piemonte without gnocchi with castelmagno cheese.
We love the tradition of these necrologies, death announcement posters.
Tour of FIAT’s Abarth Factory. The tour was free to holders of the Torino+Piemonte card.
Best meal of the trip. You’ve gotta love the Friday fish dishes during Lent.
Torino’s Palazzo Reale. There are no photo signs all over the place, and then the guards told us to take a picture (so we did).
And then we took another.
Barolo’s castle is now a wine museum. The town also has a Corkscrew Museum.
Apparently cold water was a thing in a bygone era. Wish they’d bring it back…
View of the castle.
Piemonte, Italy
Spring time at our airbnb rental house in Piemonte.
Home-cooked breakfast.
Display at a the Barolo Wine Museum
Piazza Gualdoni, Cuggiono, Italy
Wondering if any ancestors were married in this parish church, built in 1606. Cuggiono.
Giovanni Gualdoni, assassinated by the Fascists in 1944 to make an example of him for taking part in the Resistance. About 600 Cuggionese died in WWII (and also in WWI).
You don’t expect a huge relic in your grandparents’ small parish church. This is St. Benedict, the name given by Pope Clement XIII to an anonymous Roman martyr. The alter was donated in 1839 by a local countess.