Turin gears up for Winter Olympics

With less than a year to go until the Winter Olympic Games, the Italian city of Turin is gearing itself up for a huge influx of visitors. Tickets are now on sale for events being held in the city and in the nearby mountains, while preparations for the Games are moving ahead fast. The concept of “the piazza” has been chosen for the Games; according to the Torino 2006 website this is because the plaza is seen as “a place full of passion and associated with excellence, where culture, style, technology, good taste, sport and emotional involvement all come together”. Turin itself is in the process of being decorated for the occasion: “A riot of images and colours expressing the enthusiasm of the town for this event and bearing witness to how Torino has already entered fully into the Olympic spirit,” the website adds. A range of events will be taking place in the city over the following year; anyone visiting the city this spring may want to note that the city, along with the province of Piedmont celebrates the “Grande Festa del Cioccolato” (chocolate festival) from 4 to 13 March. On a different note, the exhibition “Impressionists and Winter, France and Europe”, featuring works by artists including Cezanne, Van Gough and Monet, has recently opened and will run until 25 April. Fittingly, the main theme of the exhibition, which is being held at the newly-restored Promotrice delle Belle Arti, is snow. Tickets for events at the Games can now be purchased at http://torino2006.ticketone.it, while Turin’s official website http://www.turismotorino.org offers travellers the chance to search out and book accommodation. Report by Tim Gillett, News From Abroad Ltd