Exploring Genova

Friday  

23 August 

Day 54

42 to go

Morning arrived, we opened the shutters to let in the sunshine and proceeded to stay in bed. We weren’t active until 9am. With breakfast eaten, and our bag packed, we headed out to explore Genova. Our first port of call was to suss out tomorrow’s journey to Milan. 

We made our way to Darsena metro, locating the lift we could have used yesterday. We entered the underground and caught the train one stop to Principe. As we left the metro,we encountered the local police checking tickets. They were quite stern, but couldn’t fault our tickets. We then made our way through to the station, noting the same train to Milan was 80km late. We heard a message say it was due to behaviour on the train, hopefully we don’t have the same issue tomorrow. 

We located the platforms and the lift, backtracking, so we knew exactly what to do when we are carrying all our things. We reentered the metro, watching some poor tourist get screwed over by the train gestapo and returned to the underground, catching the train a further stop, so we could head out to the Lanterna. 

Once at the station, we then had a 1.5km walk to the lighthouse. There were great views over the extensive harbour. It is an extremely busy port. We continued to follow the signage, until we reached the ticket booth. We paid the 8 euros each and then proceeded to the base of the lantern. The lighthouse is considered the symbol of Genova. It is 77m tall, the third tallest in the world. 

We wandered the park area below, before entering a museum exhibit, detailing the lanterna’s importance and showing off various lamps. We then began the 172 step climb inside the lighthouse. It was pretty challenging and we had to stop along the way, but when you reached the first terrace you had a terrific 360 view. We caught our breathe for a bit, before making the descent, a much easier journey. We wandered back to the metro line, returning to our apartment to have lunch, a well earned rest and a chat with mum and dad back home. 

Once revived, we were back on the metro making our way to the Ferrari station where we could check out the main square, Piazza De Ferrari. In the middle of the square is a large, bronze fountain that was built in 1936. There were also avenues of fountains and there were many kids running around enjoying the spray. 

This piazza was also home to two of Bruno Catalano’s bronze statues from his ‘The Travellers’ collection; Khadine and Benoit There are seven to be found across the city. The architecture around the Square was quite striking, with different art periods having an influence on design.

After checking out the piazza we navigated to Casa Di Cristoforo Colombo and Porta Soprana, before winding our way towards Cattedrale Di San Lorenzo. We stopped for gelato on the way and passed Chiesa dei Santi Ambrogio e Andrea. The Cathedral is quite striking. It dates back to the 12th century and has a gothic facade in striped marble. 

We continued our amble to the waterfront, so I could see the view in the light. We wandered by the Porta del Molo, currently housing and Egyptian exhibit and along the wharf. We stopped at a waterfront restaurant for our afternoon Aperol Spritz and beer. It was another glorious, sun shiny day. 

As we made our way back to our apartment, we located another Bruno Catalano statue, Hubert, to admire. We walked the wharf siding the aquarium, passing the biosfera dome. There was even a major mitchell cockatoo inside. We watched the many fish, schooling in the waters below and marvelled at the giant aquarium having dolphins inside. 

We returned to the apartment at 4pm, opting for a quick rest, and a chance to cool our feet in a bucket of water. The combination of cobbles, stairs, uneven paving and steep inclines have taken their toll. 

At 5.30pm, we ventured out in search of dinner. We returned to 29th Street, knowing they had great food and a good beer selection. We were there just before opening, plonked ourselves in a corner and enjoyed watching the world go by. The meal was again, delicious.

Following our feed, we happily meandered the streets and sneaky alleys, some smelt worse than others. Genova appears to be a giant toilet. The graffiti and general litter; cigarettes, cans, bits of paper are left everywhere. It makes us appreciate how clean Perth is by comparison. 

We made our way under the expressway, taking in the art that adorns the uprights holding the road in place and then returned to our room for the night. We watched the sunset from the balcony and the lights begin to twinkle over the water, before we closed down the shutters on the evening.