Continued from Europe 2016 – Part 6.
Genoa (Genova) – A hard to beat tourist destination!
Genoa is one of our absolute favourite places anywhere. We have stayed there on four occasions, from two days to three weeks. It is a perfect place for immersion in Italian life!
This is the first of two updates, mainly photo essays. They will barely touch on what Genoa has to offer, so we will provide more detailed posts at some stage in the future given the city and the region is a photographer and food-lover’s paradise.
Genoa – Where is it?
Genoa is the perfect base for exploring the Italian Riviera, Liguria and the Cinque Terre.
Genoa – What it offers
Genoa is a fabulous treasury of history, architecture and cityscapes. It is very much intact and it is possible to wander seamlessly between the port, the ‘old town’ of the 12th and 13th centuries, the glorious ‘palazzos’ of the 15th and 16th centuries and the modern shopping streets. You will see little sign of industry in the city area, instead you will have a breathtaking encounter around most corners and spend a lot of time with your head turned upwards or into doorways as you survey yet another glorious building.
It is difficult to understand why Genoa is not a tourist drawcard: you will see little evidence of international tourists apart from when a cruise ship docks for a day. Instead, Genoa is a working, living place with the bustle being that of the locals going about their business and leisure. It is also a wonderful food destination with eating places everywhere, and they all survive by meeting the standards that the population expects. Following are photos from the city and port area. We will cover the food side of Genoa in the next post.
A trip out into the port or a ferry trip along the coast is the best way to get a feel for the city.
Heading from the modern port area into the city, you soon find yourself in the maze of streets and alleys of the ‘old town’.
As you head gently uphill, you come across wonderful old ‘palazzos’ and public buildings and most of the time you can poke your head inside.
Wandering around, day or night, you will come across some wonderful ‘piazzas’ and shopping streets.
There are wonderful views from various high points.
There are interesting shopping streets, shops, museums and galleries.
And at Teatro Carlo Felice you can find Italian opera of the highest quality and which is well priced compared to the more famous Italian opera houses; we have attended performances of Carmen and Turandot.
The glorious coastal region west and east of Genoa will have to wait for a future post. However, here is a teaser: Boccadasse is on the edge of Genoa and is the nearest of the ‘cute beyond belief’ seaside villages along the coast.
Next, a look at the cuisine side of Genoa.
Continued in Europe 2016 – Part 8.