a short dispatch from Torino, Italy

Note: I don’t have time to write a full story today, so instead I’m giving you a short dispatch from a city that really surprised and impressed me. 

Torino. Turin, as it’s called in English. Located in the northwest of Italy, not far from France. 

Torino’s population: nearly 900,000. That’s much larger than Florence or Venice, two Italian cities that receive many more tourists each year. While those cities find themselves increasingly swamped with visitors, Torino has a sort of cool factor that I’ve not experienced anywhere else. 

Before I visited in April, Torino hadn’t been on my bucket list. I simply hadn’t heard much about the city. I knew that Torino once hosted a winter Olympics, and I knew there was a place called “Caffé Torino” on my way to the gym. Shockingly (I know) that didn’t give me much information about the city itself.

I’m a dedicated advocate for spontaneity. So when my friend Alexa suggested a day trip to Torino when I visited her in Italy, I thought “Sure!” Then I quickly googled Torino so I could pretend like I had the slightest bit of knowledge about the city.

(Turns out, Torino was Italy’s first capital. Who knew? Besides, you know, every Italian.)

Allow me to re-emphasize: Torino is cool. It’s a city filled with Baroque and Renaissance buildings that make you feel like you’re walking through another century. The city has green squares or piazzas throughout, so you can sit down, have a coffee, read a book, people watch, and enjoy the sunshine — my activity of choice on days when I have the luxury of doing nothing.

Torino has a bit of a raw edge, which may come from its identity as a manufacturing city where Fiat is based. Torino is also an immigrant city. When we visited the enormous Mercato di Porta Palazzo market and Gran Balon flea market that seemed to span across the entire city, sellers from Africa and the Middle East set up tents with fresh fruits and vegetables, fish, cheese, sausages, used clothing, furniture, and flowers.

I left the market satisfied with my haul — four vintage hair scarves, one euro each.

I don’t know if you’ve ever accidentally stumbled across the burial shroud in which Jesus was allegedly wrapped after he was crucified, but that’s what happened to Alexa and me when we decided to check out a church at the Palazzo Chiablese in the center of the city. What’s that crowd doing in that corner? we wondered. As it turns out — there it was. The Shroud of Turin. A sacred relic. (I was not surprised at the number of Polish people in that church.)

Later in the day, we spent a few hours at the National Museum of Cinema, which exhibits the history and science of film. Along with the Newseum in Washington, D.C., (RIP) it’s one of the best museums I’ve visited. We also hung out at a community art space, crashed a gelato festival, ate homemade pasta at a secret restaurant inside a private home, and bought some heels.

By all accounts, a perfect day.

In short, Torino is a historical city that buzzes with life and character. If you visit Italy, here’s my suggestion: Skip the suffocating crowds in Venice. Go to Turin instead.