Advertisement
Photo 2
My room at Hotel Dock MilanoI woke up this morning and I think that the hectic-ness of the last couple of weeks had finally caught up to me. I was definitely travel weary. Even after a hearty breakfast, I was still a little sluggish. I figured that I would head out and just see how it would go. In the end, I did get quite a few things done but it was a slow start. I had no sense of direction and my legs felt like lead. I knew that I was going to have a few of those days so in Turin it was. It did not take away at all from enjoying what I did manage to squeeze though.
The first stop was another thing that I been looking forward to and that was the Museo Nazionale de Cinema. It is housed at the Mole Antonelliana, a building originally intended to be used as a synagoge but never used as such. To find it is pretty easy. It's like trying to find the Eiffel Tower in Paris. You can see it pretty much from anywhere. To reach it, I walked by the Royal Palace where there seemed to be a large congregation of
Photo 3
Terrace and the view military that had gathered. Mamma mia!!
The museum itself takes you on a tour of the cinematic history which includes shadow theatres, camera obscuras, magic lanterns, etc. There is a small section dedicated to the Lumiere family (whose museum I saw in Lyon). A really fascinating look at the development of cinema and a huge collection of artifacts. The second floor is called the Temple Hall. It is a huge room with two large projection screens. There are red velvet reclining seats and you can lie back and enjoy the projections. Around this particular floor are what they refer to as "chapels" that each dedicated to certain films. There are props from Bonnie and Clyde for example. The round bed with heart shaped pillows from the movie Lothario seemed to draw alot of attention. From there, you make your way along this passageway that circles the building and again touches on the different aspects of cinema making eg. scripts, lighting, costumes, props, sound, the director, casting and on and on. There are props and original items from different movies. There are videos playing throughout obviously. The tour ends with the Panoramic lift. The elevator itself is smack dab in
Photo 4
Terrace and the view the middle of Temple Hall and zooms you up 85 meters in a mere 59 seconds. It's a glass elevator of course and it allows you to see the entire Temple Hall from above. The views outside of Turin are pretty spectacular. I loved this museum. My photos are awful because it is so dark in there and it certainly don't do it justice!!
After that I decided to stop for a bite. I walked in and the waitress addressed me in Italian. It must have been the dazed look in my face that alerted her to the fact that "non parlo l'italiano". So instead of giving me a menu, she grabbed my arm and said "you come". So I went and was lead to a glass display where all of the choices were laid out. Crisis averted ... and I have come to the conclusion that I overcook my pasta!!
I circled back to the Royal Palace (yep ... military still there!!) and took the audioguided tour. The outside looks relatively plain but the inside is ... well ... insane! I have never seen such ornate rooms. The one that stood out for me is the dining
room where the table (which probably seated 20 plus people) was set for a meal. As you walked in, you could hear the menu being read out. I'm sure that the poor security guard that had to sit in that room could rattle that list out in a heartbeat!! The ballroom was also interesting because it was filled with mannequins dressed in period costumes. A very interesting visit and definitely one of the more elaborate palaces that I have seen so far.
Right next to the Palace is a cathedral. The facade (and even its interior) are relatively plain. What makes it stand out is the fact that the Shroud of Turin is housed here. There are video displays that explain what the shroud is and how it would have come to be. You don't actually see the shroud itself. It is stored in a box that is covered for its protection. There is a reproduction that hangs just above it though.
My visit of Turin would end with a stroll on Via Garibaldi. It is a pedestrian mall filled with shops. Oh the clothes that I saw and wished I could have taken home!! There was also
Photo 6
The street where my hotel is. Covered walkways pretty much the whole way the call of gelato ... chocolate and pistachio this time around I actually managed to order in Italian but then the girl asked me something, glazed over look and she kind of just looked at me with a "never mind ... just act like I didn't ask anything" kind of look. I get a feeling that I am going to have many of these encounters in the next few weeks! I need to whip out my iPod and listen to my Italian lessons!!
Advertisement
Tot: 0.078s; Tpl: 0.019s; cc: 7; qc: 24; dbt: 0.0471s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Barbara McKenzie
non-member comment
Star Wars Items
Thanks for including the items from Star Wars. I would love to see this museum. It looks amazing!