Piedmonte ( Torino )

TORINO

From Roma Termini station, we took a night train to Torino Porta Nuova station. With 2-3 hours time to explore Torino before heading for Aosta, we decided to explore the city’s monuments. We headed for a cafe ( il bar ) for our morning caffeine shot.
Torino (Turin) is home of the FIAT cars and the host of the 2006 Winter Olympics. The city’s icon, the Mole Antonelliana is Torino’s version of the Eiffel Tower. It is the capital of Piedmonte region and is close to French and Switzerland.
Turin has one of the grandest piazza (square) in Italy. Piazza Castello and Piazza San Carlo are ideal squares to engage a chat with friends or observe the passers-by. The River Po follows through Torino and the whole city is so misty in late autumn as we walk by the river Po. It gives the feeling of walking out of a chilling room except that the temperature is much warmer.

We left Torino for our next stop at Aosta, capital of the Valley of Aosta region. Aosta is bordered by France and Switzerland and French is spoken in this region.

Val d'Aosta ( Aosta )

AOSTA

The ride from Torino to Aosta was indeed breath-taking. Passing by meadow fields with cows grazing grasses and also smelling their dung as we lowered the train glass window were unforgettable memories. Along the ride, we passed by many small towns and seeing tall mountain peaks and the forest in late autumn season with orange and brown foliages. Some peaks were capped with a thin layer of snow. Our excitement built up as we are moving further and further away from Perugia, Central Italy.

Upon reaching Aosta train station, we were surprised to see a pinkish train station with lots of students waiting for the trains. The students came form the small villages around Aosta and they were curious to see Asians ( my brother and myself ). From the station, we could the signage to the main square, Piazza di Chanoux.