Tom`s travels: Langhe & Roero (31/07/2021)

On our way to Liguria, we decided to do a small day trip through the beautiful Langhe and Roero region, seeing the old town and vineyards which characterize them. Unfortunately, the day would be mostly cloudy with a couple rain showers here and there which we luckily managed to cover ourselves from. We left Alessandria in the morning, and in about 1h drive reached the small town of Neive. The town is part of the club, the most beautiful villages in Italy, and like most other towns in the area is located on a hilltop and features a small yet pretty medieval city center. After reaching the town we parked the car as close as possible and then continued on foot. We reached the central and main square, Piazza Italia, which looks more like a larger street, sided by elegant mostly 18th-century palaces such as the Palazzo del Municipio. From the square, we then headed up along the winding cobbled streets that are arranged in rings around the hill and reached then the top where the 13th century Torre dell'Orologio is located. Not far from there we then visited the nice church of San Michele from the 18th century in a baroque style which is currently used by the orthodox community. Right next to it we then visited the church of Santi Pietro e Paolo once a 12th-century building but later transformed into its current neoclassical form during the 18th century. After that, it was time to head back to the car and move on to the next town, Alba. Like Neive, it is located in the Langhe territory and is known worldwide for its truffle and wine. We found a parking spot right outside the city center and then continued on foot walking along one of the main streets which eventually took us to the main square, Piazza Risorgimento. The square was surrounded by nice buildings including several medieval towers, which still dot most of the city center, the medieval Palazzo Comunale, and the Cathedral. We decided to visit the latter, originally a Romanesque building, later transformed into a Gothic one, and then again in the 19th century into a neo-gothic one. The facade and interior were in fact from the last refurbishment while the beautiful bell tower dates to its earliest form from the 13th century. Continuing onwards we then reached the church of San Domenico, an early Gothic building, constructed between the 13th and 15th centuries with an impressive facade and an even more impressive interior. We managed to enter right before it closed, as it is currently used for exhibitions and such and had some interesting modern paintings. Particularly nice were the well-preserved 14th-century frescoes of the apse, columns, and ceiling. As we continued on our walk we then passed by the church of Santi Cosma and Damiano which was closed, and in front of it the church of the Maddalena which featured a nice frescoed baroque interior and cupola. After a bit more strolling around the pretty old town, it was time for us to look for a place to have lunch. We found out a restaurant right outside the city center so we got back in the car and drove there. Called Succolento it was located in a small countryside property with super cute fluffy chicken roaming around and serving vegan and vegetarian food. I had rice with vegetables while Ania took farinata with grilled vegetables. After lunch, we then got back in the car and drove on to reach the third destination of the day, the small town of Grinzane Cavour. Known for its castle which stands at the highest spot in town and dominates the beautiful hilly landscape covered in vineyards which the town is also known for. The building was constructed between the 13th and 14th centuries and is a beautiful example of a fortified mansion in the area, with its typical red brick. The castle also hosted for nearly twenty years, the Italian statesman Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour, who was mayor there during that period before becoming an important nationwide political figure. Inside the castle was also an exhibition on the topic of wine, but it was rather pricy and we weren't so interested in seeing it so instead stayed outside and admire the building and the surrounding view. Not so far in the distance we noticed large dark clouds approaching and so decided to move closer to the car. By the time we were inside it started pouring, but as is typical with these summer rains, it didn't last long. After it stopped we continued our trip and drove on to the nearby Cappella del Barolo a chapel located in the middle of the idyllic rolling hills of the Langhe surrounded by vineyards. To reach it though we saw that, during summer, cars were not allowed up the narrow road and so we had to park a little further away downhill. That meant we had to walk quite a bit uphill and despite the clouds, it was still rather hot. We noticed some cars still went and didn't really care about the ban which was really a shame. Once we reached the site we came upon this very interesting small chapel, originally built in 1914 but fully refurbished in 1999 when the Ceretto family, owner of the monument, entrusted two artists Sol LeWitt and David Tremlett to fully color it. What came out was really interesting and nice, with swirls of all kinds of colors covering the whole surface of the chapel. The place became really famous recently, mostly due to social media, and so when we reached it there was quite a crowd of people wanting to take a picture in front of it. After visiting it we descended back down the hill, took our car, and drove to the nearby town of Barolo, known for giving its name to Barolo wine, one of the most important red wines of the region and of all Italy. Once we reached the town and parked the car we continued on foot through the narrow cobbled streets and passed through its pretty historic old town. The main church, San Donato, was unfortunately closed but next to it stood tall and imposing the castle, which as always sits on the highest spot in town. Originally dating to the 10th century it was heavily restructured during the 19th century when it got its current appearance; inside it holds a museum dedicated to wine which we also decided not to visit. After one last stroll through town, we headed back to the car and after a short drive reached Pollenzo, located in the plains right next to the Tanaro river. Once a roman town known as Pollentia and founded in the 2nd century B.C., with the modern houses built around the shape of the ancient amphitheater still visible in their layout and using a satellite. It is now known for holding a castle that was once a residence of the Royal House of Savoy. In fact, back between 1832 and 1848, the King of Sardinia, Carlo Alberto of Savoy promoted a great transformation of the town with romantic neogothic revival architecture of the church, buildings, and castle. The nice castle now holds a prestigious and international university, the University of Gastronomic Sciences, founded by Carlo Petrini, founder of the Slow Food Movement, to focus on gastronomic sciences and the organic relationships between food, ecology, and cultures. As we strolled around the university's grounds we then decided to head back to the car and after just a few minutes drive, reached the last stop of the day, the town of Bra. Located between the plain and the hills it is part of the Roero wine region. We parked the car right next to the city center and continued on foot. We passed by the nice structure of the church of Santa Maria degli Angeli, which was closed, and an elegant portico siding the main street, Corso Garibaldi. At the end of it, we reached Piazza Caduti per la Libertà where some of the city's main monuments are located, the baroque 18th century Palazzo Mathis, the late 19th century neoclassical Palazzo Garrone, and the brick 18th century Palazzo Comunale, sided by the beautiful baroque facade of the church of Sant'Andrea. Unfortunately, as we attempted to visit the latter, the custodian told us he was just about to close and so we had to leave without seeing its interior. On the other side of the square, slightly uphill we managed to visit the church of the Santissima Trinià, known as the Battuti Bianchi, which featured a beautifully decorated baroque interior with paintings and white stucco. After continuing on through the old town we reached then, at the northern end, the church of Santa Chiara one of the most important monuments in town. It was built in 1742 and it is a true masterpiece of the Piedmontese rococo style with impressive marbles and a decorated cupola. From there we headed back through the old town passing by some other churches such as that of San Giovanni Battista and that of Sant'Antonio before reaching once again the car and finally driving off towards Liguria.