Turin and around
Hello to all the travel junkies and reading enthusiasts! Two weeks have gone by and we're back with another little adventure. This time we will visit the famous Italian region of Piemonte (or Piedmont in English - although why, I have no idea) which is full of beautiful wines and some not so bad nature. ;)
This trip will take us almost more than a year back in time because it took place in July 2019 (when we were all so naive and COVID-19 was not part of our lives). Our trip was planned over 5 days which meant 3 full days of roaming this amazing part of Italy. The weather in Piemonte in July can go from scorching hot to pleasantly warm depending on the area and forecast. We had both and I must say cooler weather and light drizzle were preferred over sight-seeing and wine-tasting in the 30+ degree weather.
This is our trip map, as I said, these are 3 routes, one for each day we spent there:
1st Trip
We decided to start this trip with a little bit of nature and that was why we chose to drive around two natural parks. Also, I am following an Italian model (who has two amazing dogs that's basically the reason :D) who often goes to Sestriere and it looks amazing there so we wanted to have a look. The long drive and not that much time spent outside was not a problem at all since this was the day when it was the coldest and it was drizzling pretty much the whole time. Also, the temperature dropped considerably and we were literally shivering in shorts and t-shirts.
Besides Sestriere, we wanted to stop at the Sacra di San Michele. When we arrived it was a bit of a hike to the chapel so we weren't quite sure if it was wise to go ahead. There was no time to contemplate this as the rain could have come at any moment. So we just set off and hoped for the best. We made it up in a pretty dry state and took a few photos. We couldn't really enjoy the view because it was cloudy and grey. I guess if the weather was different you could make a day out of this combining it with some boating on the lake just down the hill. Anyway, that was not the case on that particular day so we just went back to the car glad we made it back relatively dry (encouraged by our success I was all for going a bit farther down the road to get a good shot of the Sacra and that was when it was slowly starting to pour. Who wouldn't fancy a jog back up to the car?).
2nd Trip
When we woke up the next day there was no trace of the weather from the day before. It was hot and sunny and that was when we found out that having a cabrio isn't that fun when the sun is blazing down on your head. Our first stop was Alba - a small and cute town full of locals having wine and beer and just enjoying the day (la dolce vita, right?).
Our next stop was a little village called Serralunga d'Alba which, according to all the internet resources, had an extreme photo-potential. We arrived there almost exactly at noon so we were in great need of some good bar/café but as we hadn't found any we went on to Barolo. We had a tasting booked there at Marchesi di Barolo where they surprised us with a little lunch menu which we immediately went for. Being fed meant we were better prepared for the tasting and there was a greater chance we could actually leave with 0.5‰ which is the limit allowed in Italy.
However, with so many great wines we soon found out that that was not the case so we walked to the village where we went to the wine museum. Despite the fact that we usually don't do spontaneous stuff because we like to have some itinerary this was great! The wine museum is inside the castle tower so it gives off a completely different feeling AND is an amazing place where to cool off easily.
The only thing left to complete this extremely hot day was some Italian gelato! With that checked off the list, we drove back to Turin.
3rd Trip
Our third trip might seem the same when you look at the map, and yes, part of the route was the same but it wasn't the same - you do get me, don't you? The plan for this trip was basically wine and not much else. And please don't ask me how we were planning to drive all day because we obviously hadn't figured out that part. In reality, however, one of the four wineries we wanted to check out was closed. The second one was nowhere to be found. So that leaves us with two which sounds a lot better.
The first one - where we had a booking - seemed to know nothing about our booking - such a wonderful feeling! and so Italian! :) Anyway they took us in and we probably spent two hours there and ended up buying several bottles of Barbaresco (we're still storing one, I believe, which is pretty admirable :D) so it was a pretty good deal for them. When we were leaving we most probably weren't on the sober side so we spent some time just chilling and playing with three amazing dogs they had there. When we were ready to drive again we set off for Asti.
The destination in Asti was clear - Casa Martini. Again we did the tour (self-guided with audio-guides) which was amazing as they included the old campaigns, ads and old bottle designs so it was more than just the usual 'how we make this stuff'. After that, we went to the gift shop where they offered everything from helmets (I guess for your Vespa :)), t-shirts to calendars and bottles (of course). So we tasted some Martinis and then bought a bottle for the evening.
At the end of the day, we made it to two out of four places so not that bad, right?! Btw every day after we returned to our hotel we made a little trip to stock up on some must-have snacks and bottled water and so on. With so many stops and driving it was the best thing to do. Although, when we came across something good - like in Barolo - we didn't say no to that ;).
Turin's must-see
We didn't make that many plans for Turin knowing that we weren't going to spend that much time in the city. However, we found a few places where you need to go if in Turin:
Fontana dei 12 mesi is an amazingly large and elaborate fountain which is near the Turin's castle inside the most amazing park. During those hot days, the fountain and the park were an ideal place where to spend some time. You could just sit there, enjoy a little pick-nick while watching the squirrels eat those precious Piemontese hazelnuts.
Piazza Reale is where we started our Turin stay. It's gigantic and really impressive. Wherever you look, there are impressive royally looking buildings and you can definitely feel the 'grandeur' of it all. You can also get to the park behind it, find some bench and just enjoy the day.
Useful tip: If you have your bottle or basically if you have any empty bottle you can refill it at this Square. Trust me, it's a lifesaver in July!
The following is the place to be when you're hungry - Pizzeria da Pecchia. It does not get any better than to eat (this) Italian pizza in Italy. It's strongly recommended and you have to be prepared for the fact that you will not be able to choose because you want to eat it all. We went there two out of three evenings which speaks for itself. As there are several locations, we can only vouch for the one at Via Genova. "Amazing!" she said, drooling and imagining the amazingly delicious pizzas.
This all reminded me how great it is to just go somewhere you've never been before (not that you can't go where you've been, that might be equally amazing), explore and try everything, walk hand in hand, take perfect photos and just enjoy. It really doesn't matter if it's in Italy or in Greece or in your home country. I honestly cannot wait when we set off for our next adventure. Also, I feel like road trips have its special charm, you always find something unexpected because you wander somewhere unexpected. That is why in two weeks we will be back with the wine and road-trip theme however, we will not be staying in Italy. Curious? Come back and see for yourselves. Thank you for getting this far, thank you for checking out our IG and thank you for being back in two weeks. C U then!