Popularly called as the “Capital of the Alps,” Turin has much to offer to the tourists and is situated at the old city center. Choosing a car hire will be a better option to visit all the sightseeing present in the city.

A great extent of the Turin’s character appears from various squares, like the piazzas, that are lined up by the arcades. The Piazza Castello which was first designed in 16^th century by Ascanio Vitozzi and was specially made by Carlo Emmanuele I is a large paved place where Via Garibaldi, Via Roma and Via Po come together and also stood as a power base for the Dukes of Savoy.

The other attraction is the Palazzo Madama, once a Roman residence a medieval age castle built on a Roman gate with ornate facade. At present it houses the Antica Museum of Art which consists of a rare collection of the artifacts of Gandhara, which is an ancient kingdom situated to the northern Pakistan.

Caval’d Brons is a bronze effigy of the Emanuele Filiberto and is situated in the center of the Piazza San Carlo. This statue belongs to the 19^th century and is made by Carlo Aroccheti. The statue is surrounded by number of restaurants, shops and cafes.

One of the largest European squares among the arcade spaces is the Piazza Vittorio Veneto with nearly 40,000 sq mi of surface area and is the biggest square in Europe without any monuments. Various traditional festival celebrations are held in this square including the cultural events of several kinds every year. Besides parking, there are many cafes present to enjoy one of Turin’s legendary aperitifs.

The Fiat’s plant, set in the northern city of Turin have incurred heavy loss of nearly 800 million Euros during 2009, many workers at the company walked off the job fearing the withhold of their bonuses for this month.

At the Fiat’s Mirafiori plant, nearly 250 or 80% of the gear box workers have walked off the job while the robotics and sheet metal workers on Monday, put on similar strikes.

A spokesman of Fiat said that the “bonus paid this month is related to the company’s performance during 2009 and as a result, the bonus for July has fell by 50% in 2009 to 600 Euros compared with the bonus in 2008 which was 1200. Besides, the workers are also paid 100 Euros as a monthly bonus which is not related to the company’s performance during the preceding year.”

Giorgio Airaudo, the Fiom trade union’s secretary general said that “in order to convince the workers, conducting meetings are not enough but the company has to pay them bonuses as they have contributed much for improving the finances of the Fiat group.”

Fiat, during January has declared its 800 million euro loss in 2009 because of global recession. It employs 80,000 workers in Italy and nearly thousands of them are laid off for the time being at 6 Fiat plants for many weeks during February and March and it had announced the closure of the Sicilian plant that employs 1400 people, in the next year.

Car hire agencies in Turin are Alamo, Budget, Europcar, SIXT and Thrifty.

The Shroud of Turin is a cloth made of linen kept in the royal chapel of the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist in Turin, northern Italy. The Shroud bears the image of a man who appears to have borne physical suffering consistent with crucifixion.

Both the image on the shroud and its origin are a subject of debate among the scientific, historic and religious communities. Some opine that the shroud was the cloth placed on Christ at his burial and the image is the face of Holy Jesus Christ, while others say that the artifact is from the middle Ages. The Catholic Church has formally neither accepted nor rejected the shroud.

Controversies/Facts

The shroud had suddenly appeared in 1356 in the hands of a French knight who would not say where it came from and that a local bishop soon thereafter claimed that an artist “cunningly painted”. In 1979, Walter McCrone, a world renowned forensic microscopist, claimed that he found paint on a few Shroud fibers.

A decade later three radiocarbon dating laboratories, using carbon 14 dating, supposedly proved the Shroud of Turin was medieval. The carbon 14 dating of the Shroud of Turin was flawed because the sample used was invalid; The Shroud of Turin was at least twice as old as the radiocarbon date, and possibly 2000 years old. The carbon 14 sample was taken from a mended area of the Shroud that contained significant amounts of newer material.

The final say “Whatever the Turin Shroud is, it is not a medieval fake relic.”

While in Turin, you can tour some of its attractions such as museums, parks and castles. Nearing the city limits, the unfinished House of Savoy is home to contemporary artworks. Other residences of the House of Savoy can be found outside the city.

These are the Stupinigi Hunting Pavilion, the Racconigi Castle and the House of Savoy Hunting reserves. Stupinigi and La Mandria Park are two of Turin’s natural reserves. Further west, Saint Michael’s Abbey stands on a rock. It was built in honor of the Archangel Michael.

• Further Down Its Roads

In the town of Ivrea, a 4^th century cathedral can be found. It has been a holy site eversince. Like Spain’s annual tomato festival, Turin also has its Orange Festival or Battle of Oranges held in Valencia. Instead of tomatoes, oranges are used in these fun battles.

West of Ivrea is the Parco Nazionale Del Gran Paradiso.  It is a national park that offers high mountains with a large variety of flora and fauna for everyone.

• Up And About

Up north of the park is the town of Acosta. A car ride to the place alone is already quite a sight. Be sure not to sleep while on the way. It will be such a pity if you slept over and miss the great views.

When in town, take some time to check out the Arch of Augustus, the Aosta Cathedral,the Porta Praetoria and a whole lot of intact ancient Roman towers.

During summer, the Alpine side of Turin will greet you with its lively parks. During winters, ski resorts sprout up for skiiers to enjoy.

• Car Hire

Whether summer of winter, touring will never be a problem with hired cars. Cheap cars for hire are available for tourists who have long trips ahead of them while in Turin. With car hire, you do not have to spend much for a Turin tour.

Aside from the Shroud and the Auto Plants, Turin has more to give. Its baroque cafes are interesting. Its Arcades and museums atttract people for all their worth. Turin is truly a city worth seeing. If one is looking forward to skiing and doing winter sports, then Turin is a good place to start with.

• The Festive People

If you are big on festivals, then you better come over Turin on June 24 for its Festa di San Giovanni. Events happen all day with amazing fireworks displays. On March, Turin celebrates its Chocolate Festival. It also holds a 2 week street market every christmas season.

A public concert is also held every New Year’s Eve. International Athletes can also participate in its annual marathons in April, mostly, they come in large numbers.

• The Regal Buildings

Turin has some great buildings to visit for their excellent exteriors and for what are inside them. The Palazzo Reale and Piazza Castello the city’s center has benches and fountains to complement the already beautiful line of grand buildings. The Via Po has long arcades and old palaces and people walk by this beautiful display.

The Mole Antonelliana is a tall tower that contains a cinema museum. Visitors will be taken atop the tower with a panoramic view of the city.

The Palazzo Carignano has the Museo del Risorgimento and the Royal Armory and everything related to the unificationof Italy.

One of the most important Egyptian Museums, the Museo Egizio is in Turin. It is housed along with the Galleria Sagauda inside a huge Baroque Palace.

• Turin Car Hire

Take a trip down Turin and see beyond its Torino cars. Better yet, see its best destinations on a car. Hire a car to take you anywhere around Turin and appreciate the host of wintersports like never before.

Like the city’s treasures, cheap cars for hire are not hard to find in this place. One swift ride will be the beginning of an adventure in the place shrouded for too long.

Being near to lakes and hills, it can be hard to understand how it is Italy’s industrial center as it is home to car manufacturers. After the 2006 Winter Olympics, it has risen among the ranks of the country’s tourist spots.

More than 3,000 rooms were added to the city’s hotels to accommodate the Winter Olympics spectators. Attractions were carefully improved not to disappoint its visitors.

• The Shroud OF Turin

As the Turin Italy Winter Olympics have shown, the city plays host to the games and many activities in its alpine hills. Way before that event, Turin was merely just known for the famous Shroud of Turin. It is believed to have been used to cover the dead body of Jesus Christ.

Many believers have pilgrimed to the museum where it is kept. Pilgrims can only see the shroud in rare times since it is often hidden. When it is put on display, it becomes an overnight attraction.

• Modern Turin

The city really looks modern and it has nothing much of old buildings because World War II had powdered it to the ground. There are some old places that were not destroyed by the war, though.

The Royal Palace and the Cattedrale di San Giovanni. The palace was constructed in Baroque style and has elegant ballrooms and gardens. The cathedral has a Renaissance touch to it. Its black marble walls give a shadowy effect.

• Places Change

Turin’s latest attraction is the village where the Winter Olympics were held. The village has helped other parts of the city to grow. The industrialized centers are now booming in hotels, restaurants, parks and shopping centers.

Tour around the modern city of Turin on car hire. Being home to a number of world class car manufacturers, you can be sure that there will be no lack of cars for hire. Explore this new Italian hotspot like a modern tourist would, on a car.