We got up early to pack.  Licia came to get the keys and say goodbye and we had a nice talk.  She booked a cab for us to go to the “fast train” station called Mediopadana just outside of Reggio.  We had seen this place from the autostrada while driving in and it is really not what you expect a train station to look like.  You can google it for a view from the outside but I took these two shots from the platform while we waited for our train.   The two hour ride on the Frecciarossa was smooth and we listened to a podcast to pass the time. 

The rain is pervasive in northwest Italy so we weren’t supprised by it in Torino.  Grey and rainy—-that’s it.  But I still felt excited coming to a big Italian city, rolling my luggage, finding the cabs.  I love this stuff. 

We checked into our new, very quirky apartment.  We have great views but it is built in a former attic space so the ceilings are slanted and even I have to duck to get to some things.  It’s a little crazy but for 5 days we can live with it. 

Luckily there are many places to walk near here (we are just off Piazza Castello) that are covered by porticos so we walked over to the Coop supermarket.  This is an upscale Coop—like a Publix Greenways store or Whole Foods.  And it is inside a beautiful galleria of shops.  There were barely any other customers in there though.  Here is the entrance door:

We walked around more seeing wet piazzas surrounded by big name stores and avoiding puddles.  Finally we found the Roman Quadrilateral area with narrow streets and lots of small shops.  We got some breads and salumi and cheeses for picnic dinner in the apartment.  Prosciutto di Bosses from Val d’Aosta was super sweet and delicious.  We drank a Nebbiolo from La Morra which was fine for the picnic but not very special.

They are saying the rain will end on Saturday… or Sunday.  Whatever, we’ll make the best of it.