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Rainy days and Thursdays – why am I so tired?

Thursday, 6 September 2018

I am sleeping well. It’s a bloody miracle. Why, then, am I so tired all day? I’ve resolved to ignore it, go with the flow, and see where the day takes me.

We said we’d get to the Tabaccheria by 1, when all of Torino – well, Italy really – closes down for two or three hours, to top up our BIP cards – those are the monthly travel cards. It’s closer to 2 when we leave. And it’s raining.

My new raincoat is actually waterproof as promised but in 28 degree heat it’s also hot!  We walked down the road, with  overheated me taking photos but mostly in my imagination – too rainy! Past the Porta Palatina, past and through the Palazzo Reale and into the Piazza Castello to the tourist office.

Walking through the Palazza Reale
Walking through the Palazza Reale

Since July I’ve been trying to book a tour of the Guido Gobino chocolate factory but you need five people to do this. Emails have gone back and forth and I went from being ‘madam’ to ‘dear.’ I thought I might be able to hook up with others but so far I’ve had no luck. Then Cristina told us about the Terra Madre Salone del Gusto 2018 – it’s Torino’s food festival week starting the 20th September! Loads of food events around and during that time. And included is a Gobino tour. Finally!

But no, the tourist office tells us that there are no tours – until we explain that it’s part of the Gusto week. The light dawns! But no again! It’s fully booked. Disappointment doesn’t even describe it.  Petulance is more like it. How could my now-buddy. Loredana, at Gobino not have mentioned this to me? We left.

Why do my legs hurt so much???

The rain hasn’t let up but we wander through the deserted porticoes and through the little streets checking out the shop windows. The system here seems to be throw a lot of stuff into the window, pretend this is artful, and stand back to admire. One butcher shop had a shop window full of a haphazard wooden buildings and some toys – I wasn’t quite sure what they were getting at but whatever… And the toy shop – they can arrange their windows however they like – those dolls are wonderful.

The porticoes are wet and deserted
The porticoes give shelter in the sun OR RAIN
Via Giuseppe Barbaroux
Via Giuseppe Barbaroux. Little artisan and independent stores here
My favourite dolls on Barbaroux
My favourite dolls on Barbaroux

We stopped briefly in the market. The lazy mood hasn’t let up so tonight we’re trying readymade cotellette – one chicken, one veal.

At home and wrote to Loredana about the tour. I poured on the pleading – well, just a bit. What have I got to lose?

Aperitivo
Aperitivo – homemade, followed by a bit of a failed cotelleta and salad. I LOVE the sesame grissini here
And there was a RAINBOW
And there was a RAINBOW
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Rediscovering Torino and napping

Tuesday and Wednesday, 4 and 5 September, 2018

A good night’s sleep and the next day a slow morning. There’s something nice about going somewhere for longer than the usual week or two. There’s no need to rush to do anything. There’s plenty of time if you don’t get too lazy and this time I actually plan to be quite lazy and have some days of rest. Today seemed like a good day to do this. However, I do have to eat and eating is something that’s central to my life and travel. So…off to the market – briefly.

I now like the farmers’ market far more than the bigger market in the square. We mostly looked around to see what was being sold. Italians like to sell only what they produce themselves and this means everything is seasonal. At the beginning of September, the food looks a bit different than last year’s mid-September arrival. I bought a lettuce and some tomatoes.

The Farmers' Market at Porta Palazzo
The Farmers’ Market at Porta Palazzo

In the Mercato Orologio, we bought a pizzetta. Then we wandered a bit.

The big market at Porta Palazzo
The big market at Porta Palazzo. I thought it would be fun to contrast this to last week’s photo of a pepper seller in Ridley Road
Wandering through the Galleria. It's been cleaned up and there are some outlets now
Wandering through the Galleria. It’s been cleaned up and there are some outlets now
We were amused AND horrified to see 'Burger Store' in the Piazza Reppublica
We were amused AND horrified to see ‘Burger Store’ in the Piazza Repubblica
We ordered an insalatina di polpo to go (osporto) and watched the pizza making skills in Rondini
We ordered an insalatina di polpo to go (osporto) and watched the pizza making skills in Rondini

Definitely time for a nap! It was just like the hot summer in London. Afternoon sleeps were normal and pleasant. We talked about going out for dinner but in the end we ran to the Carrefour, went to fill some bottles at the fountain and dined on package ravioli! A television night.

A lazy dinner
A lazy dinner

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Turin IV – the journey

Monday, 3 September, 2018

On Monday. we were up at 4am after a full day or two of careful packing. Krish had wanted to pack a crate of food to send along. However, after reading the shipping rules, it turned out that most of the things weren’t allowed into Italy. Back to the drawing board.

I suggested that we compromise with both the food and the clothing, etc and take what we could’t do without. For me, that would  probably mean abandoning all the food but, at any rate, with some of that famous Krish tetris skills, most of it made its way into the cases I abandoned a few things, he abandoned a few things, and it all made its way across the UK, France and into Italy. Later we realised we hadn’t packed the pan we’d wanted but, all in all, pretty much a successful venture.

We left by taxi to St Pancras at 6am. Best to skip through the details of the entire trip but here are the highlights:

An enormous queue at St Pancras. We honestly thought we’d miss our train but made it on with minutes to spare. There were nervous faces all around us the whole time


A pleasure to know our way into the Paris Metro and which train to catch after last year’s charade, but the usual crowded and shabby RER train

Gare de Lyon is spacious and bright compared to Gare du Nord so we sat and rested for the couple of hours before boarding

Welcome to Paris. Gare du Nord
Welcome to Paris. Gare du Nord
Waiting for the RER - 9 minutes to go
Waiting for the RER – Nine minutes to go
Gare de Lyon
Gare de Lyon
From the Gare de Lyon - the closest view I got of Paris
From the Gare de Lyon – the closest view I got of Paris this year

The Milan train starts after you’ve walked the very long Chamberry train length. We were in the very first carriage of the Milan train so that’s a lot of walking. Phew!I knew our upgrade to first class wouldn’t amount to much and I was right.  A bit more comfortable, a bit more room but still crowded, smelly (oh, that toilet!!!) and no room for bags, which were stacked several high in every spare piece of space.

We waited and waited and left fifty  minutes late.

It seems the earlier train was cancelled (there’s a French rail strike) and so the people from that train were squished into ours This may not seem like a big deal but it did mean that for some reason those from the earlier train came to sit in the same seats they had booked for that time. This explained the fracas when people were non-plussed at discovering other people in their seat. I have no idea what sort of idiot thinking that is but there you are. Although warned that they should vacate and go into the Chamberry train, most elected to stay put and some were then annoyed when along the route others came in and demanding their proper seat. There are almost no words…or no polite ones

Then was the battle of the power outlets. My adapter didn’t fit into them. They were the French Euro oulets. Now, why a train that travels between France and Italy, with announcements in both languages would equip a train with French-only outlets is puzzling. It made for a long six hour journey

But make it we did. About forty minutes late but there was Cristina and we were off to what Krish was already calling ‘home.’

The balon (Eye of Torino) from the balcony tonight
The balon (Eye of Torino) from the balcony tonight