Pictures from Italy-- Silvano d'Orba the first visit

We were in Silvano d'Orba, the town Glen's grandpa was born in, from March 12th-15th. We then went to Turin, but the Mayor had asked if we could come back to Silvano, so after Turin, we had our second visit to Silvano on March 17th and 18th. The second trip will be a separate post.

March 13th was the day we went to several cemeteries: in Silvano d'Orba, in Tagliolo Monferrato, and Ovada.

Silvano to Ovada is about 4 miles

The cemetery in Silvano d'Orba:

graves in the courtyard surrounded by mausoleums

Glen sending a Marco Polo video

The Perasso mausoleum, though no one we knew was listed there 

in front of the cemetery are the remains of an old castle

part of the ruins of the Torrazzi castle

view from the parking lot to the Castle and St. Peter's Church

a zoomed in view--btw, the construction on the Silvano castle was finished in 1492

The cemetery in Ovada, the next town over:

We noticed that this family died the same day, so we looked it up. Turns out there was a dam in the area that burst on 13 August 1935, and hundreds died.  We later found out that the ferry that the Perasso family used to run was destroyed in the flood and never rebuilt.

We ate in Ovada at a Turkish and Italian place both days we were in Silvano. Here is a picture of the vegetarian pizza they served-- eggplant, zucchini, and roasted bell peppers -- and of the falafel wrap I had the next day. Turns out there were several Italian/Turkish restaurants in the area.

Silvano d'Orba city hall

With the help of google translate, Glen had been emailing someone in the city hall about the cemeteries. When we showed up at the city hall on our 2nd day there, the man Glen had been corresponding with was so nice that he offered to drive us up to the old cemetery, which is now abandoned and closed. So we couldn't see anything other than a wall and closed door, but it was the cemetery from the 1800s, so supposedly it would have had some of Glen's relatives in it. It is next to the castle and St. Peters Church, which are also closed, so we couldn't go in any of them.

La Chiesa di San Pietro Apostolo 

a painting on the outside of the church

the top of the church, which didn't really show up in the other photo

the stairs leading up to the church (I just found everything beautiful and interesting)

the cemetery is behind the wall and gate on the left with the castle in the background and the church on the right

We took a walk up past the church and the castle and it gave us a nice view. With all of the hills in Italy, there were always nice views of everything.

looking down at the church

heading up the road 

Glen in the middle of another Marco Polo recording

I loved the old walls 

the cemetery door is to the left

the wall to the cemetery

Glen in front of 78 Via Roma where his grandpa lived as a little boy

these signs cracked us up--in America they would say Slow Children instead of looking like the children are running for their lives on their way to school

And one last amusing (at least to me) item--saw this in a store in Ovada. With Easter coming, they had many items like they do in the US, but I have never seen a chocolate chicken with chocolate eggs. I absolutely love the idea.

Pictures from Italy-- Turin

We were in Turin from Friday March 15th-Sunday March 17th. Glen's second cousin, Grazia, lives there and she and her friend, Lionello, acted as our tour guides. When Glen's grandpa came to the states in 1910, his older brother, Giovanni, stayed behind. Giovanni is Grazia's grandfather. 

We wandered all over and took so many pictures that I have had a hard time tracking down what some of these buildings are called. The internet is a big help, of course

Day 1 in Turin March 15th with Lionello as our guide

Church of Saint Thomas the Apostle where there's a good view of Turin

view from Church of Saint Thomas the Apostle

view from Church of Saint Thomas with the famous landmark building Mole Antonellia on the right

We visited the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist (il Duomo di Turino), the church which is associated with the Shroud of Turin, which is believed to be the burial shroud of Jesus Christ. We could not see the Shroud ("Because of its extremely fragile state, the shroud is not viewable to the public except during very rare public viewings. The last time it was displayed in public was during a 2015 exhibition attended by millions of visitors—there are no current plans to display it in the near future."), but there was a replica in the negative so you could see the features better and there was some great art work.

in the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist

in the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist-the Shroud's negative replica

in the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist

in the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist the annunciation of the angel Gabriel to Mary

looking up into the Dome of San Lorenzo (inside the Royal Church of Saint Lawrence)

Glen, Lionello, and Hannah in front of The Royal Palace of Turin, palace of the House of Savoy

many places had mosaic floors

"The Palatine Gate represents the primary archaeological evidence of the city's Roman phase, and is one of the best preserved 1st-century BC Roman gateways in the world"--it's just the 2 turrets and the wall in between them

I think this was a courtyard inside the Royal Palace

the rear side of the Palazzo Madama "still bearing the appearance of a 15th century castle"

a side view of the Palazzo Madama--the front part was built in the 1700s, if I understand it correctly, but never finished 

the bridge over the Po river

the Po river

there were some topiary-type bushes in a garden next to the Mole Antonelliana

in front of the Emanuele Filiberto di Savoia statue which is in front of the Royal Palace of Turin located in the Piazza Castello  (Castle Square)

Grazia served us dinner both nights we were in Turin

Day 2 in Turin March 16th-- Sacra di San Michele--St. Michael's Abbey

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

"The Sacra di San Michele, sometimes known as Saint Michael's Abbey, is a religious complex on Mount Pirchiriano, situated on the south side of the Val di Susa in the territory of the municipality of Sant'Ambrogio di Torino, in the Metropolitan City of Turin, Piedmont region of northwestern Italy. The abbey, which for much of its history was under Benedictine rule, is now entrusted to the Rosminians.

A special regional law acknowledges it as the "Symbolic monument of the Piedmont region". This monumental abbey served as one of the inspirations for the book The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco." (I read the book years ago--makes me want to read it again)

Groundbreaking on the abbey was in the 10th-11th century and it was completed in the 13th century.

On Saturday, Lionello and Grazia drove us up to the abbey. The view was fantastic! Part of the view is the Alps and the general place where Hannibal brought his elephants over the Alps on his way to attack Rome in 218 B. C.

Lionello, Hannah, and Grazia climbing the stairs to the abbey

Glen admiring the view

Torre Della Bell'Alda (the tower of beautiful Alda) built in the 12th century

this is the area where Hannibal crossed the Alps into the valley

part of the abbey is built around the mountain

explanation of this sign below:

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Saint Michael's line

The Saint Michael's Line, also known as the Sword of Saint Michael, is a postulated ley line connecting monasteries and other sacred sites dedicated to the Archangel Michael in Europe and the Holy Land. The aligned sites are almost all located on prominent hilltops, and include Skellig Michael, St Michael's Mount, Mont Saint-Michel, the Sacra di San Michele [where we were], San Michele Arcangelo, the Sanctuary of Monte Sant'Angelo, the Panormitis Monastery of the Archangel Michael, Symi, and Stella Maris Monastery; although the latter is not explicitly dedicated to St Michael, the mountain on which it sits, Mount Carmel, is associated with the archangel by the biblical story of Elijah and the prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18)."

Pretty cool, huh?