The comments expressed in this blog are those of Sally Wallace and in no way represent the opinions of AED, the Fulbright Commission, or the Department of State of the US Government.

Saturday, January 15, 2011

Torino, Italia: Home of the 2006 Olympic Games





Bonjour mes amis! Ciao da Torino! Today, January 15, Lee and I decided to travel two and a half hours by car to Turin, Italy (Torino in Italian.) It was a spectacular drive, since Turin is dominated by snow-capped Alpine peaks. There are the Ligurian Alps to the south, the various French Alpine chains to the west, and the Pennine Alps to the north, most famous including the Matterhorn. Turin is the capital of Italy's Piedmont region. Turin, with its roots in the Savoy dynasty dating to the 11th century, was Italy's link to royalty and the core of the modern Italian state. We passed through a 13 kilometer (about 7 miles) tunnel called the Tunnel de Fréjus which separates France from Italy. Once we arrived in Turin, we walked east toward the Po River and went up Turin's best-known landmark, the 167 meter Mole Antonelliana. This provided us with a great view of Turin with the Alps in the distance. The Mole Antonelliana also houses the national cinema museum. The history of Chambéry is closely linked to the House of Savoy and was the Savoyard capital from 1295 to 1563. There are many similarities architectually between Chambéry and Turin. While in Turin we sampled a very popular coffee from Turin called bicerin. This historic drink of Turin, which has evolved from the 18th century "bavareisa" consists of a mixture of espresso, chocolate, and fresh cream. It is served in a tall glass so you can admire the mouth-watering colors and aromas. Meraviglioso!!!
Mme. Wallace

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