Turin

I had a meeting in Turin the other day and got to see around the city a bit. It is a beautiful city and really pleasant to walk around. There are some beautiful views with the Alps just to the north and west of the city. It includes the largest Piazza in Europe. Much of the city's public squares, castles, gardens and elegant palazzi (such as Palazzo Madama), were built by Sicilian architect Filippo Juvarra, who modelled these buildings on the Baroque and classical style of Versailles.






Turin used to be a major European political centre, being Italy's first capital city in 1861 and being home to the House of Savoy, Italy's royal family. I drove past the old palace which still looks stunning in opulance.

Turin is well known as the home of the Shroud of Turin, the football teams Juventus F.C. and Torino F.C., the headquarters of automobile manufacturers Fiat, Lancia and Alfa Romeo, and as host of the 2006 Winter Olympics.

There are a number of places there I would like to visit another time,, such as the old Roman Palatine Towers, the Cathederal and the Egyptian museum which is reputedly one of the best Egyptian collections in the world.