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posted by bobchaplin
at 02 Aug 2010, 20:29
in The Road Too Much Traveled: Driving Adventures in Piemonte

posted by Claire
at 07 Jan 2010, 5:32
in The Road Too Much Traveled: Driving Adventures in Piemonte

posted by George M. Taber
at 05 Jan 2010, 12:07
in Napa Valley

The Road Too Much Traveled: Driving Adventures in Piemonte

04 Jan 2010 | 3 comments. | 1441 views

I wrote this a few years ago, and sent it to some friends in the Philadelphia area. The analogy I used, regarding directions, may be too specific for people not familiar with the region, so I added a few references here. (You’ll see them in the parentheses.)

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Last week I stayed in the town of Acqui Terme, in the eastern part of Piedmont. I knew that I had an appointment in the town of Canelli after I arrived, but searches on the web turned up no hotels. I also looked at the town of Nizza Monferrato, as it looked close by on the map, but nothing was really available there. Eventually, after much searching, I settled on Acqui Terme, which gets its name from the hot waters, which have brought people to the town for millennia. Looking on a map, Canelli is almost due west of Acqui Terme, so I thought getting from one place to the other would be easy. Ah ha! This is Italy, and things are not always as they seem. Now, if I were a local, I might have been able to drive from one to the other, but the directions I was given were quite different. I would actually need to go through Nizza Monferrato to get to Canelli. The parallel I would draw is getting from Cherry Hill, NJ to Valley Forge, by way of Doylestown, PA, rather than driving due west. (Think of driving from Sacramento to Oakland, by way of the Central Valley. Or, Philadelphia to Pittsburgh, going through Baltimore.) So I reluctantly followed the directions.

I did not have any real problem driving from the Milan airport to Acqui Terme, as it is mostly highway, and even when people passed me on the two lane highway, I could see that they needed to be pretty close behind. With a car whose engine could barely turn a rotisserie, passing is a sport for the brave here. However, when you’re driving up hills and around sharp curves, and not altogether sure where you’re going, you don‚’t need someone so close behind you can smell what brand of toothpaste they use. So, I guess it’s a good thing that my windows were closed, and that they probably couldn’t understand what I was yelling in English, although the tone might have conveyed a sense of my feelings.

I made it to Canelli in one piece, but then it was a matter of finding the winery. Italians give directions like: We are in the town of “So-and-so”, which is 50 kilometers from the city of “You-know-where”. It‚’s like telling someone from another country, “The Waldorf Astoria? It’s in New York City, just go there.‚” But, after several phone calls, and an accidental tour of the countryside, I made it. It was a great tour, with beautiful wines, and I retraced my steps home, taking some very scenic shots along the way, including the picture here. (Pay attention, this will come in later.)


Back at the hotel, I explained to the desk clerk that the next day I was going all the way to Alba; much further west in Piedmont, and that it looked as if I could take the highway there. “Oh, non signor! You must go through Nizza Monferrato to get to Alba.‚” “But, but‚…‚” Nope, that‚’s the way I had to go. But, there would be signs for Asti-Alba, and then on to Alba. And of course, after I was close enough to be where I was scheduled to visit; there were more phone calls, and detours. But again, a lovely tour, with a view of the Barolo area from the winery site, and more wonderful wines.

But this is Piedmont, not just famous for its wine, but also for its food. And, I was in Piedmont during truffle season! And I wanted to eat something ‚“con tartufo‚” if I was going to be 4,000 miles from home, and in the center of this gastronomic paradise. So, I asked at the winery where I might eat, and after consulting their extensive list of restaurants and my desire to avoid the center of any large city. (Look at how much trouble I already was in driving. How much worse could it get after a dinner with wine? It boggles the mind.) We finally decided that I should try to eat at a restaurant in Priocca. Getting there was fairly easy, and I parked close to the restaurant. I walked in, and inquired about a table. There were fully booked for the evening. (Really? On a Wednesday?? Oh well.) But, they would be happy to set up a table for one, for me. Okay then, that‚’s settled. What time could I eat? Ah, the restaurant does not open until 8:00 PM. And it was only 5:45 at this point. Now, I‚’m sure it‚’s a good restaurant, and I hope to return there to eat, but‚… I would have to wait two hours plus, and I’ve seen elevators with more people than there were in this town. So, I declined, and thought I could always make the soccer match that was being played back in Acqui Terme that night.

So, off to the road I went. I looked for signs for the highway to Asti, figuring that I would pick up the road to Acqui Terme along the way. After all, I was starting to master driving around this area. And, I did okay. I made to Asti, and saw the sign for the highway which would take me back to the town and my hotel. Then the trail went cold. I went through the roundabout (Circle in NJ terms.) in Asti in every direction. I finally was doing what I feared most. I saw a gas station, so I stopped and asked for directions. I think I did all right by that as well, as the gentleman giving me the directions did not speak English, and looked as if he had been sitting at that station since the invention of the internal combustion engine. But I understood in what direction he wanted me to go, and headed off. This meant that I was driving in downtown Asti at rush hour. This is exactly what I had hoped to avoid. I followed the trail through several lights, and all types of turns, but eventually found the highway out of town.

For awhile the road signs indicated the way towards Acqui Terme, and then the name of the town disappeared. At that point, I had to choose an alternate town, and head towards that. At one point, I drove past a hotel I had seen earlier on my way. That I figured was a good thing, as it meant that I was on a road I had driven earlier. But as I remembered that it was on the same side of the road on the way TO Alba, I realized that I was heading away from where I wanted to go. A bit further down, I made a U-turn, and started to return. After a bit, I had not seen any signs for some of the bigger (read “less small”) towns, but I did see a sign for a village outside of Canelli. And that’s the way I drove. Now, it was starting to get dark, so I was driving in a foreign country, lost, and literally in the dark. As I approached San Stefano Belbo I saw a sign for Canelli, and was feeling a lot more comfortable.

I was on roads with no illumination, among the vineyards and without any types of road signs. Take a look at the photo attached. Now, look at it with your eyes closed, your hands over your eyes, while sitting in a dark closet. Those were my driving conditions, on roads about eight inches wider than the very small car I was driving. Finally, after a turn here and a 180 degree change in direction there, I was on the same road where I had been lost yesterday. A place I had been, and knew how to drive! So, it was through Canelli on roadway 592, where I picked up my old friend route 456 on to Acqui Terme. Only an hour and a half later than I thought I would make it, and with a lot less gas in the car, but there I was back at the Hotel Valentino. Just in time to walk in to town for dinner there. But, this was only the second full day of a ten day trip. What trouble might lie ahead??

 

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