The people of Oulx

Oulx - Oulx is a small town hidden in the middle of the Piedmontese mountains, in the Val di Susa. Its history is handed down above all in the memory of the inhabitants, perhaps with some small inaccuracies. The original name of the place was Ad Martem, as here there was a temple dedicated to the god Mars. Today that temple, after several alterations, is the parish church.

Being a border place, it is said that Napoleon passed here stating that it was preferable to be first in Oulx than second in Rome. Later, with Fascism, the town even had to change its name, which was Italianized in Ulzio. Most of the people who live here were born there and have spent their entire lives there. At one time in Oulx people lived on pastoralism and crops, although the ground is decidedly harsh. Today the two souls of the town are still the rural one (especially in the hamlets) and the tourist one. Oulx is a land of passage, crossed by travelers and visitors, and if it were not for this characteristic the economy would have been very poor. Nevertheless, those who live in this place, beaten by the wind and blue skies, proclaim it the most beautiful place in the world.