Information for visitors
Where we are:
How to reach the Department:
The Department of mathematics "Giuseppe Peano" is located in the city center (see the map above) and can be reached either by foot or by public transportation from both the Porta Nuova train station and the Porta Susa train station. Notice that there are other train stations in Turin (Torino Lingotto, Torino Dora as well as other minor stations), but they are less well-connected to the city center. Here is the website of the national train company.
If you are flying into Turin's airport
(which is called "Caselle"), you can reach the city center using the
bus service (the price for a trip is about € 6,50-7,50). Regular taxis can also be found at
the airport; a trip to the city center usually costs around € 30.
Alternatively, you can also fly to Milan's Malpensa airport. Form there you can reach Turin's
Porta Susa train station
by bus in a couple of hours (the price for a trip is around € 22).
Notice that there are other two airports close to Milan (Linate and Orio al Serio),
but they are less well-connected to Turin, so we suggest to avoid them.
If you are coming by car, there are five main highways joining Turin to other cities in
Northern Italy: A5 to and from Aosta, A4 to and from Milan, A21 to and from Brescia, A6 to
and from Savona and A32 to and from Bardonecchia.
Cars can not circulate in the city center from 7:30 to 10:30 on mornings from Monday through Friday:
this (PDF, in
Italian) is a map of the ZTL (Limited Traffic Zone), which also shows which underground parkings
can be accessed all day long (in blue) and which can not be accessed between 7:30 and 10:30
(in orange). The Department is inside such zone, so you may have to park relatively far away if you plan on being
at the Department before 10:30.
On-street parking, accessible outside the ZTL timeframe, costs
€ 2.50 an hour near the Department.
Accommodation:
Here are just a few suggestions:
Additionally, there are halls of residence which are managed by an institution related to the University. Reservation requests must be submitted to said institution, here is more information. If you have any trouble you can contact us and we will try to get in touch with the institution.
Restaurants:
There are plenty of restaurants in the centre of Turin. Below we offer a choice of places,
which are close to the math department. Note that this list is just indicative and is by no means
complete.
Taberna Libraria, Via Bogino 5 (4 minutes on foot from the math department). Italian
food at good prices. Suitable for your daily lunch. Note that there is a more expensive price
menu in the evenings and on weekends. There is also a big variety of wines and other spirits
sold separately.
Dual Ristorante Pizzeria, Via Cesare Battisti, 17/d (2 minutes on foot from the math
department): Italian and international food at good prices. There is also a big variety of
pizzas. You can choose either the Napoletana or the Romana type of pizza.
Eataly Torino Lagrange, Via Giuseppe Luigi Lagrange, 3 (3 minutes on foot from
the math department): This is a restaurant of the famous food-hall Eataly, which also
collaborates with the slow food movement. The prices are a little above the average but
the quality of the dishes makes it worthwhile. There is also a food market there. Note
that you pay directly at the table when you place your order.
Zamy, Via Carlo Alberto, 14 (1 minute on foot from the math department): If you like
pasta this is the place. A casual and cheap restaurant with a big variety of pasta and sauces
to dress with. This is a self-service restaurant. Each free table has a small plate with the
table number on it. In order to place your order you need to take this plate with you to the
counter.
On the map you can find the aforementioned restaurants and some other suggestions.
...And a note on the Italian etiquette in restaurants.
1) When entering a restaurant, which is not self-service, always wait for the waiters
to show you where to sit even if you are greeted by a passing waiter and there is a free
table right next to you. Otherwise the waiters may have hard time figuring out that you are
there and haven't placed an order yet.
2) In the menu you may see some dishes labelled primo and secondo. These are
both main dishes. Primo, which is not to be confused with appetiser, is usually a carb
based dish, as pasta, rice or soup, whereas secondo is more protein oriented, usually meat
or fish served with a vegetable based side dish. While a traditional full course would consist
of antipasto, primo and secondo, most Italians just have a one course meal at
lunch (either a primo or a secondo).
3) At more informal restaurants it is common to go directly to the counter and pay there by
saying your table number instead of asking a waiter for the bill at the table.
Tipping is quite unusual.
Internet connection:
The eduroam network is available in the math department. To use eduroam you need some
credentials provided by your home institution. You will have to enter a username and a password.
The password is the one that you use to log in your home institution web service.
The username has the form:
myid@myhomeaddress
where "myid" is your "local" username to log in your home institution web service, and
"myhomeaddress" is the address of your home institution in the eduroam system. (It may
coincide with your e-mail address.) For example the username of a member of the University
of Vienna with local id "jdoe" is
jdoe@univie.ac.at
In some platforms the connection might fail even if you entered the username and the
password correctly. This is most likely because the security configuration is not right.
Here is our recommendation to fix this. Go to the eduroam connection properties (the way to
do this depends on your system) and make sure that you have the following set up in the
security settings:
Security: WPA & WPA2 Enterprise
Authentication: Protected EAP (PEAP)
Anonymous Identity: *Leave this empty*
CA certificate: None *check "no CA certificate is required"* (Use this unless you know a
specific CA certificate to use)
Inner Authentication: MSCHAPv2
PEAP version: Automatic
Username: *the username indicated above*
Password: *the password indicated above*
You might also need to enter in the IPv4 Settings field that the method is "Automatic (DHCP)".
Save this configuration and then you should be able to connect to eduroam.
Public transportation:
Turin's city center is relatively small and walker-friendly. For longer distances or
tired feet public transportation is available;
tickets must be bought on the ground, at newsstands or tabacco shops.
There is also a bike sharing service, called [TO]BIKE.
Daily and weekly memberships are available.
Groceries:
One convenient choice is the Carrefour Express Supermarket located just across the street from the math department where Via Carlo Alberto meets Via Maria Vittoria.
Tabacchi Shops:
These are a type of convenience stores. Besides tobacco you can find bus tickets (biglietti) for the city centre and small consumables like AAA batteries and pens. In some larger ones you can find postage stamps (francobolli). There are plenty of them and you can spot them by their characteristic "T" sign. Here is more information about Tabacchi shops.
Places of interest for mathematicians:
The birth-house of Lagrange (yes he was Italian): Via Giuseppe Luigi Lagrange, 29; 7 minutes on foot from the math department. Note that there is *no museum* there -- you can just see the exterior of the house from the street!