February 15, 2026

Torino, Italia

Serra and Pietro got home very late last night. The girls were very excited to see them this morning. We were not much more than an appendage, probably the appendix, this morning. They went out about 9:30 to get a coffee and walk the chocolate festival with the girls. We need to stay and pack both for the next two days and the next week in Sicilia. We are off to have your eyes examined, by Carmen, Gela. Then we’ll wait and see if we order glasses or not.  

The next two nights we are staying in a B&B within the old Roman part of the city. We did this on purpose as we haven’t really stayed “in” this part of the city. The Hotel NH Collection Torino Santo Stefano, where we stay a week ago, it at the very edge. This one is in the middle of the old city, more or less.

It is called B&B Via Stampatori. The B&B is actually located in the Palazzo Scaglia di Verrua. The palazzo is in the block (carignone) known as "Isola di Sant'Alessio," which also includes Palazzo Frichignono di Castellengo and Palazzo San Martino della Motta. A couple of interesting things about the building. First is the exterior façade, which is unique in Torino. The large internal courtyard also has Renaissance architectural motifs and frescoes attributed to Lombard masters.

The large coat of arms of the Counts Scaglia di Verrua is on the entrance door and is inserted into other decorations depicting landscapes, allegories, and deities, framed by typical Renaissance architectural motifs. The palazzo is of great historical value because it is one of the few examples of a 16th-century palace that did not undergo Baroque renovations, maintaining its original Renaissance appearance. It is considered one of only two examples of Renaissance architecture in the city, along with the Cathedral.

The palazzo was commissioned by Abbot Filiberto Scaglia di Verrua and was built between 1585 and 1604. It later became the property of Giacomo Solaro who carried out extensions and, in 1603, commissioned the frescoes of the facade and the internal courtyard to the Brescian artist Antonio Parentani. It later became the residence of the noble San Martino della Motta family. In the 18th century it was finally purchased by the Balbo Bertone di Sambuy family. It was also the residence of Jeanne Baptiste d'Albert de Luynes. In the 19th century it became the home of several diplomatic representations, first the Spanish one, and then from 1 November 1861, that of the Russian Empire. The building went into private hands when the Marquis of Rudinì sold his Roman residence to the Government of the Russian Empire in 1902, and the embassy moved to Roma.

Today, the building houses a couple of businesses on the ground floor, office, private residences and our B&B. The palazzo has served as a location for films such as “La Meglio Gioventù” (“The Best of Youth" a 2003 Italian, 6-hour epic romantic drama film directed by Marco Tullio Giordana that chronicles the lives of two brothers, Nicola and Matteo, against the backdrop of Italian history from 1966 to 2003. It won the "Un Certain Regard" award at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival). And the 2001 Italian film Santa Maradona written and directed by Marco Ponti, this was his feature film debut, and it was shot entirely in Torino.

We left the house just as the family got home, about 12:30. We walked the kilometer or so to the B&B. Just aa we were turning left off of Via Giuseppe Garibaldi on to Via Stampatori, Emma, our host, said hi. It caught us off guard. We didn’t know who she was but she knew us from our passports which we uploaded a while back.

Emma showed us the palazzo. The room is on the 2nd floor (3rd for Americans). There is no elevator, but the steps are uniform and easy to climb. There is a nice common room, which I am sitting in now, and three rooms off the common room. Ours is the “middle room”. We have a good-sized room, maybe 10 square meters (110 sq feet) and a private bathroom about 4 sq meters (40 sq feet). There is a nice breakfast room and a balcony overlooking the courtyard, the one with the frescoes.

We spent the afternoon resting and recovering from our babysitting job. We have tomorrow off as well, but we will still be going to Serra’s to make polenta for dinner. I bought the butter and cheese from Serra’s cheese shop (Letteria Bera) here in the old quarter of the city.

Tonight, we have decided to go to Loa, a Chinese restaurant, about a block and a half from the B&B for dinner. Chinese in Italy? Yes, it is a nice break from all that great Italian food. We also should note that we have eaten here on a previous trip. Besides, we are having polenta on Monday night.

We left the B&B and did a little walk around the block. Right outside the B&B on Via Stampatori, then another right on Via Giuseppe Barbaroux, then a right on Via Giovanni Botero, finally a left on Via Giuseppe Garbaldi. We stopped at the corner and looked into Chiesa dei Santi Martiri.

The Chiesa dei Santi Martiri (Church of the Holy Martyrs) is a historic 16th-century Jesuit church known for its modest exterior and The interior is known for its dramatic contract to the simple façade, featuring gilded decorations, marble, and vibrant ceiling frescoes. richly decor date Baroque interior. It is the first church commissioned by the House of Savoy and the oldest seat of the Jesuits in Torino. Built in 1577, it houses the relics of the Saints Solutore, Avventore and Ottavio soldiers of the Theban Legion martyred during Diocletian’s Reign.

The Theban Legion was a legendary Roman legion of 6,666 soldiers from Upper Egypt. They were commanded by Saint Maurice, who reported converted to Christianity and was martyred in 286 CE. In either September 286 or 287 the Theban Legion was ordered by Emperor Maximian to sacrifice to pagan gods and suppress Christians in Agaunum (modern-day St. Maurice, Switzerland), the legion was subject to two rounds of “decimation” (the killing of every tenth man) before the entire unit was executed for disobedience.  refused and were executed for their refusal.

Why are they considered the patron saints and earliest martyrs of Torino? That after a couple hours or research still escapes me. They were part of the Theban Legion which was massacred, in Switzerland, however, they ran away. Avventore and Ottavio were captured and executed by sword near the Dora Riparia River, which was just outside the walls of Torino. Solutore, who is described as being younger and faster, escaped the capture on the Dora Riparia despite being wounded. He fled to the Iberia area, where he hind in a sand quarry. He was eventually discovered and beheaded on the banks of the Dora Baltea.

Such confusion. The Dora Riparia River runs from the west of Torino into the Po River. The Dora Baltea is to the east of Torino, but is also runs into the Po River. Yes, the Dora River runs through Torino, actually we walk over the Dora to get to Luisa’s school. But they aren’t in Torino. The saints may have originally been from the Torino area? They were all killed in what is know the province of Piedmonte. Who knows? Maybe the church just needed some saints from Torino? Saint Giuliana is credited with recovering the body of Solutore (and often, in traditions, the bodies of the other two, although they were killed tens of miles apart) and burying them.

Now another level of confusion. Saint Giuliana was a 5th-century matron. The three saints were killed in the 3rd-century. She found the bodies 200 years later? There is a church dedicated to her in the Vanchiglia district founded by none other than the Marchesa Giulia di Barolo (yes, Serra and Pietro’s house are at #5 Via Giulia di Barolo in the Vanchiglia district). A small church and later a larger monastery was built on the site of the burial. The relics of the three saints were transferred to Torino in the 16th century. The relics of Saint Giuliana and the stones said to bear her footprints are preserved inside the Chiesa dei Santi Martiri!

A little bit more confusion. The church is currently supported by the society of Sant’Egidio. He was a 7th-century Greek hermit and Benedictine Abbott card in Provence, France. He is the pattern saint of the defenseless, physically disabled, and forgotten. Go and explain that one. However, if you are looking for relics of Piedmontese saints, they’re in the church around the corner. We peeked in but there was a mass going on so we didn’t actually go inside. From what we could see it was very beautiful.

We left the church and walk to the end of the block on Via Giuseppe Garbaldi and made a left on Via Saint Dalmazzo, another Piedmontese saint. At the end of the first block we turned left again. We were on Via Giuseppe Barbaroux! Giuseppe Barbaroux was a 19th-century lawyer and politician. It is a narrow windy street, some how apropos.

We wind down the street, cross over Via Stampatori and walk a little further and we are at the small courtyard which houses Lao. We are still a little early but the courtyard is full of people waiting to get in. There is a young woman taking names for tables. We kind-of push through the crowd to get our name on the list. People kept coming after us. The place is popular. At 19:00 they start calling names and seating people. It had just gone 19:15 when they called us and lead us to our seat.

The place is fairly small and completely packed by 19:30. We ordered four dishes. Zhu Rou Bao (a Shanghai style steamed pork bun); Gong Bao Ji Ding (a Sichuan style stir-fried free-range chicken in sweet and sour sauce, with peanuts, garlic, spring onions, chili pepper and board bean sauce); Ma Po Dou Fu (similar to the Ma Po Tofu in California, Sichuan style silken tofu in a picky sauce made with ground pork, broad beans and fermented soybeans); and Bai Mi Fan (steamed white rice). Mary also ordered a glass of wine and we shared a pot of green tea. It was moderately priced at less than 50 euro.

After dinner Mary wanted a gelato, but it had gone 20:00 and it is Sunday night. We walked over to Via Giuseppe Garbaldi, the busiest near by street with lots of stores and bars, but little was open. Even the gelato bar we found was closed for the evening. So, we walked back to the B&B and called it a night.

Buonanotte e Ciao,

Enrico e Maria