Magic and Halloween in Turin

Wednesday, 31 October, 2018

This would be my third Halloween in Torino. The first one I was too tired to go out but Krish and Adrianna did and came back telling me tales of candles, lights, costumes… apparently, Torino was mad for Halloween. The second, last year, I went out too and saw many people in costume wandering about the streets and squares. So this year I was prepared but also curious.

Why is Torino so obsessed with Halloween?

While I was doing research about this, I got sidetracked. Were it not pouring with rain every day and so close to the day I had to pack up and leave, I’d have made this a larger, more elaborate, project – to go visit and photograph all the things that make up this history, part fact, part legend.

The research is a bit overwhelming, to be honest. You need only Google Turin and magic to see the sites which will give you more information. I’ll try to get the main points down. (Edit: I’ve also read this  blog entry that slams the whole thing. Decide for yourself. Personally, I’m not unhappy because, as I’ve said above, this is part legend and an entertaining one it is.)

The reasons for Turin’s recognition are rooted in the legend of the founding of the city, born after Zeus had hurled Phaeton, Prince of Egypt, in the river Po. H landed where is now the Fountain of the Four Seasons, located on the banks of the river in  Valentino Park. So was founded an Egyptian Turin and Egypt is where magic is said to have begun.

Historians tell us that the Savoy family were always interested in alchemy and the art flourished in Turin. There are said to have been three alchemic caves below the city and the alchemists told Cristina (Maria Cristina of France, the daughter of Henri IV and wife of Vittorio Amedeo I of Savoy who ruled after her husband died) where they were. She never betrayed their secret.  Some say they are below the Palazzo Madama, while others locate them in the park of the palace itself. They’ve actually never been found.

Then it seems there are magic triangles. Three points on the map where major cities of magic are located. Torino is in both. The white magic triangle is  Prague, Lyon and Turin. The black magic triangle is San Francisco, London and Turin. Turin is the city that has both – of great significance in the world of magic. The statues that mark the points in Turin are for the white, the statues of Castor and Pollux at Piazza Castello, and for the black the Caduti del Frejus n Piazza Statuto, These statues stare at each other across the distance and each has a pentagram on its head.

This explains the mysterious Grotto di Merlinho magic shop is in Piazza Statuto! It’s never been open when I’ve walked by but it’s always intrigued me. (And that’s when I discovered how many magic shops there are in Torino.) Many feel that under the statue – topped by who some believe is Lucifer – is a portal to hell. This is probably connected with the fact that the tunnel that linked Italy to France was there – as well as the entrances to the Alchemic caves. But more about those in a bit.

At the beautiful round Gran Madre church The Holy Grail is said to be buried, pointed at by the gaze of ‘Faith’ holding a chalice.  This and the Shroud, then. The plot thickens…maybe.

I also read about the Palazzo Trucchi di Levaldigi  (40 Via Milano) also known as Palazzo del Diavolo, the devil’s palace. The legend says that an apprentice wizard tried to summon Satan here and was turned into its ornate creepy door with the devil’s face as a knocker.  There are mysterious deaths and ghosts here, they say.  The building is now a bank, and it has the highest turnover of night guards in the city. The Torinesi believe in magic. The door is magnificent, with many carvings – the knocker slightly disappointing, not as large as the legend! 


Turin has attracted many philosophers, magicians, and authors – Nostradamus, Apollonius of Tyana,  Bartolomeo Bosco, Nietzsche… and now me! If I return to Turin, some magical exploration is necessary!

But, anyway, it’s time to move on to the present day Halloween in Turin! And if you want to read more:  The New York Times and The Washington Post have articles. Just click!
Continue reading “Magic and Halloween in Turin”

Torino – Thoughts about leaving

Sunday, 28 October, 2018

Today is the first ‘last.’ This is the last Sunday I will be in Turin. I don’t like countdowns. I struggle with mindfulness but I think, despite all my anxiety, I tend to be more of an ‘in the moment’ person on the whole. I’ll think about that some more.

There are no cohesive themes here. I’ll drop in some photos and see what comes to mind.

When I was free on Friday, I took myself to Cianci Piola. I know it’s not fancy but so far all of the places I’ve been, no matter how much or how little I spend, this spot hasn’t really let me down. I’ve vowed to come back at least twice before we leave. I’m looking forward to my Hackney meals and discovering new places, as well as tasting things that aren’t Italian and predictable. However, I will miss this restaurant.

Following is the daily menu mini blackboard they bring to your table, then my meal. Anchovies with green sauce, Tripe and beans, and Apple Mousse with amaretti and cream. I sat inside today because, beleive it or not, it’s quieter. It’s going to rain all week and I hope I can still sit aside, that they have an awning.

I’ll miss this square too. It’s the nicest in Torino. It’s peaceful but there are always people here. Especially at Cianci Piola. There’s also some history, and a great ice cream shop, as well as a view of the Duomo, which is still also on my list for these rainy days. Will I fit it all in? We’ll see.

I went looking for the Lavazza original places. It took a while, since the numbering is a bit obscure. Via San Tomasso is in the very centre of town near Piazza Castello and just south of Via Garibaldi. I found number 5, the original shop but it was an apartment building with four shops at the ground floor. No plaque anywhere so quite difficult to figure out where it might have been. Number 10 (the second shop when Luigi needed to expand) was easier. I knew that it was near the junction of Via Barbaroux so I looked around there. Surprise, there was no plaque but there was a notice in the window. I will go there and have a drink…for fun.

Number 5
Number 5
Number 10
Number 10

I’ll miss these streets. These old towns comfort me and I’m not fond of wide avenues. When I’m back in London I’ll find my City alleys and I’ll be myself again.

I went to the Museo del Risparmio on my way to a photo exhibit I’m interested in. It’s the Museum of Saving. That’s an odd concept. There were a lot of interactive exhibits and I sat for about an hour watching short videos about how today’s economy was shaped. I actually learned something. Somewhere in there was a viewing room where I saw a Three Stooges type video about forging money – I missed the point somewhere. Too Italian? At the end was a big room that had two videogames – in the first you chose a person and followed their lives to help them spend wisely. In the second you had capital to invest in properties and grow your financial empire – I was terrible at it and lost everything. In the very last room there was an exhibit of piggy banks. I enjoyed that. I must have spent about two hours in the museum. It wasn’t exciting but enough to stir some curiosity about the origins of money and all that followed.

What will I do in London? There are more museums to visit. Perhaps I should give some old ones another go. It’s been ages since I’ve visited the National Gallery. I’ll go back to the British Library and discover a few of the smaller ones I’ve had on my list for a while – like the Comedy Museum. I’ll miss the Geffrye Christmas rooms this year but hope for some events on the front lawn during the Christmas season.

Ant theme at the museum
Ant theme at the museum — No photos, Signora

The captions tell the rest of it.

London's squares are less casual, less accessible - different
London’s squares are less casual, less accessible – different
Will miss the architecture and doors opening into vast courtyards - like hidden cities
Will miss the architecture and doors opening into vast courtyards – like hidden cities
Absolutely will miss the grand doors of Turin
Absolutely will miss the grand doors of Turin. I plan a page of them
Loved this Torino symbol, the bull, bursting out of the wall at 20 Via Orfane
Loved this Torino symbol, the bull, bursting out of the wall at 20 Via Orfane
Piazza Consolata
In the Piazza Consolata. Built towards the end of the tenth century, perhaps by the Benedictine Bruningo, the tower belonged to the church of Sant’Andrea, the refuge of monks from the novalese escaped the Saracens. One of the oldest buildings in Turin
Piazza Consolata - I haven't visited the church yet, or the bicerin cafe
Piazza Consolata – I haven’t visited the church yet, or the bicerin cafe
Drogheria near Porta Palazzo
Drogheria near Porta Palazzo
I'll miss the market, the ease of it, despite the horrible crowds and sometimes grumpy merchants
I’ll miss the market, the ease of it, despite the horrible crowds and sometimes grumpy merchants

Superga – what a difference a year makes!

Thursday, 25 October, 2018

Last year (7 November) we went up to Superga and were blown away by the Alpine scenery and the view of Torino below.

This year I went up alone. First, I got totally confused with the buses and, although I found a perfect bus that went all the way to the funicular, it turned out to be a coach and my BIP card wasn’t accepted on it. So I walked and walked and puzzled over the map and backtracked until I found a bus that would take me to the same spot. And of course I arrived just in time to see the hourly funicular train leave. Last time we were completely alone at that little station. This year a crowd started forming – mostly Italians, a couple of English, and a small French family.

Its not actually a funicular but was originally a little cable driven rack system train. Its name is the Sassi–Superga tramway (tranvia) and it climbs a steep grade for 3.1 km (1.9 miles) up to Superga from the Sassi area in about ten minutes. The altitude at the top is 650 m. (The basilica is a bit higher, at 672 meters above sea level.)  The railway was opened on 27 April 1884. The cable driven rack railway system uses cables that run along the side of the track and passed around two large pulleys on each side of the cars, which in turn drives the cog wheels that propel the train consisting of the driven car (occupied by the driver and a brakeman) and up to three passenger cars. This was driven by a steam engine in the upper station until 1922, when it was replaced by an electric motor. After an accident when the cables broke in 1934, work began to convert to a conventional electric rack railway using the Strub rack system and it reopened on 16 April 1935.

Revisiting this Roa art on the way to GTT Torino to take a bus that wouldn't let me on!
Revisiting this Roa art on the way to GTT Dora to take a bus that wouldn’t let me on!

On board the tranvia
On board the tranvia
At the top
At the top
View of Superga from the Tranvia exit
First view of Superga from the Tranvia exit

Review of the tranvia: Well, it’s a great experience to have done it but for more thrills and a way better view, take the bus from just to the left of the station!
Continue reading “Superga – what a difference a year makes!”

Lavazza – Museo

Wednesday, 25 October, 2018

I’m continually surprised by the amount of history in this underrated and ‘invisible’ spot in Italy. Sure, there’s the Roman origins, but it goes on through its royal presence, its significance in the unification of the country, its entry into industry with chocolate, coffee, and automobiles, and its love affair with innovation.

Woke up to this weird red sail sunrise
Woke up to this weird red sail sunrise

Innovation is a strange word in Italy, where things seem set in stone. ‘We always do this.’ Tradition is everywhere. I see the people dancing, listen to the Klezmer-like songs at Balon, watch the pageantry of the markets, eat the food that’s been the same for centuries and tastes the same wherever I go.  Sometimes it feels quite stiff. And yet there’s also a passion to come up with something new. Maybe this is why Turin has been so immersed in industry – to produce and develop things that led the way.

I’ve watched them building the new Lavazza headquarters over a few years. The company has always been in this area of town, so it made sense that they’d stay more or less put and create the ‘Cloud’ complex. The way it’s all put together, you can really feel the pride. Finally on Wednesday I made the time to go to the museum inside the complex.

On the way to Lavazza, the mountains were the clearest I've seen them this year
On the way to Lavazza, the mountains were the clearest I’ve seen them this year

So far, Turin museums have been formal and old fashioned. I’ve not felt the need to linger. Even in the Egyptian museum last year it was the size and not the contents that kept me there so long. The Lavazza museum is quite the opposite. Apart from the Ontario Science Centre, which broke away from the traditional when it opened, I haven’t been as immersed or impressed. It’s innovative and so it seems was Luigi Lavazza, the founder. Continue reading “Lavazza – Museo”

Bergamo – Città Alta

Friday to Sunday, 19-21 October, 2018

Esmeralda and I had a date to meet in Bergamo for a girly weekend. We planned a few things, including colouring her hair! We also wanted to have a couple of nice, leisurely meals, lounge about, and explore and take photos. Then life happened. E la vita!

According to Wikipedia, Bergamo is 40km north of Milan and is the fourth largest city in the Lombardy region.  It consists of the newer lower city (Città Bassa) and the ancient walled city of Città  Alta, certainly far far fewer..   Bergamo means mountain home and has an elevation of 465m (1525.59′) I took a look at comparisons – Coit Tower is at 91m and Salt Lake City 1,288 m. Those are the demographics.

To get to Bergamo I took a train to Milan and, at the station, bought a local 5.50 ticket on what looks like a Toronto Go Train. My local train journey took abut 45 minutes, sitting in the first class carriage by mistake, something my seat neighbour found quite amusing when we both discovered it – luckily, they didn’t discover us, for on the return journey they did inspect tickets!

At the station in Bergamo, I looked for somewhere to buy a bus ticket. I found it in a tobacco shop adjoining the building. 1.30 would get me onto the bus and up the funicular to the High City. Funiculars scare me a little but it was a cool ride up – two carriages each holding maybe eight people. They go up and down – two carriages that meet each other halfway, then go again.

When I got out at the top, it reminded me a lot of the top of the funicular in Naples – a square with a cafe, and cobblestones. I waited to be met.

I left out the bit where I received an email, just two hours before I was leaving Turin, telling me that the place I’d rented was unavailable. Another place ‘of equal value’ had been found for me. Stress! An examination showed that the new place was in a good location but it was tiny – less than half the space of the original (60 vs 25 sqm). I felt sick. The original host would meet and guide me to the new place. I had no choice. She was cheerful and chatty as we took the short walk along what was definitely idyllic Italy.

The apartment was two floors up in a very old building – tiny, as expected. Clean but sparse. I grinned and bore it and resolved to check into alternatives when Esmeralda had had her say. This wasn’t the comfy, warm place I’d envisioned for our retreat. I now felt a bit bleak but I settled in to wait for Esmeralda to arrive. Meanwhile, the apartment was in the  Piazza Mercato del Fieno (Haymarket Square). It’s a pretty square – sadly, it’s also effectively a big parking lot.

Pretty much all of our Bergamo flat
Pretty much all of our Bergamo flat
Piazza Mercato del Fieno (Haymarket Square)
Piazza Mercato del Fieno (Haymarket Square) – parking lot!

She eventually did – two long delays and one cancelled train later. She was feeling sick and hungry. Too bad when I had already discovered how cold this apartment was. I called to ask about heat and about two hours later the owner arrived. She basically shrugged and said things like ‘Old Town, always like this,  mine is cold too, nothing I can do’ and tossed me two blankets. Sigh. They have a lot to learn about tourism in Bergamo.

Hungry didn’t even describe me and it was about 9:30pm – I’d had no lunch. Opposite the flat was a restaurant I’d heard about from a Chowhound member. ‘Down home cooking’ was its description and it was housed in an old blacksmith shop. Hmm.

Inside the Tre Torri
Inside the Tre Torri

It was lovely and warm in there. I wanted to move in. It was also still serving food, and was almost full of happy, chatting people. I felt pretty good! I chose a pasta of the region called casoncelli, Esmeralda chose a square shaped pasta with porcini (it’s mushroom season!). She then characteristically chose two main dishes – one a braised meat with an ice cream scoop of polenta, and one a cheese with grilled zucchini and eggplant (and polenta!). Eyes too big for her belly, always! (Sorry, Es!) Casoncelli is a pasta stuffed with cheese and meat then covered with more cheese and bacon and served with butter and sage. It was delicious but heavy and I tried hard not to eat too much of the butter. I ate about six of them and gave up. I picked at the two main dishes after that. Dessert? Who could eat it?

Casoncelli - oof!
Casoncelli – oof!
Brasato at the top, tomini at the bottom
Brasato at the top, tomini at the bottom

We went for a walk after that, covering a few streets and what looked like a main square. There were people eating under the porticoes and everything looked charming. I felt like I’d finally discovered the Italy people talk about. In the streets were little shops and lot of polenta! They’re crazy about it. Here, they serve it very yellow in mounds of all sizes and also sweetened for dessert. It was everywhere. I was really looking to seeing more in the daylight.

Typical sweet Polenta from Citta Alta- this was a giant one
Typical sweet Polenta from Citta Alta- this was a giant one
Al fresco late night dining
Al fresco late night dining
Pretty in the square
Pretty in the square

Back at the Haymarket square, we looked around. We could see a flat below ours. The ceiling was very high and beamed. There were tapestries and beautiful art everywhere. We joked how we would ask if we could move in that one instead of our poky place. It was good to laugh.

Extraordinary ceiling in our building
Extraordinary ceiling in our building

Hard to know how much to say about what happened next but here goes. Shortly after arriving back at the flat I had to run to the bathroom. This wasn’t unexpected after that heavy pasta with its cheese and butter – and despite the fact I’d tried to avoid eating too much of it – but it got worse. Now I started to see blood, including blood clots in the bathroom and, afterwards, cramps in my lower belly and more trips to the bathroom where I passed more small blood clots. I arranged myself on the couch with a water bottle full of hot tap water and hoped I’d sleep.

Much of my time in Bergamo when I wasn’t in the bathroom was spent on that couch wrapped in blankets, reading, with that hot tap water bottle. And praying nothing worse would happen, hoping I wasn’t going to end up at the hospital. It was too cold to shower. Too cold to really relax. I felt miserable.,.and scared. Continue reading “Bergamo – Città Alta”