Exploring Genoa - views from above

 We managed to see Genoa from above 3 times.

The first time we found the lift new Via Garibaldi that took us to a belvedere from which we had a great view over the port. It was cool and green and a world away from the slightly claustrophobic area where we were living. Another example of the many contrasts to be found in this beautiful city.

The second view was from the top of the Maritime museum

The third view was from the grounds of a grand house called Castello D'Albertis - the mansion was built in  the 1800s on to of old bastions on the top of a hill. What was remarkable was the lift that got us there - at first it ran along a rail on the ground as if it were a train or tram carriage, Then it stopped and after some peculiar cranking and whirring sounds, the same carriage became an elevator.

It is a unique piece of engineering. It is called the Albertis Castle – Montegalletto lift

The Castello d'Albertis was a strange place - a kind of folly built by sea captain  Enrico Alberto d'Albertis, completed in 1893 and gifted to the City of Genoa when he died.

Politics and street art in Genoa

 There was not much on the walls in Lucca or in Florence, however Genoa has a vibrant street life, and around the university there were some interesting expressions of opinion.

The university of Genoa is based  around the station and it is housed in grand buildings on which there was some salient graffiti. 

Peace among the oppressed, class war

The seagulls laugh at you

We are flowers that break the asphalt

No to racism, and fuck Selvini

No to tourism and cruise ships

No to the wars of the capitalists

Maritime Museum Genoa

We had a wonderful day at the Maritime Museum which had marvellous displays related to ships, navigation, exploration, maps. emigration and more!

All those history lessons about the Age of Exploration came to ind.

Putting aside the horrors of colonial rule and the sacking of riches from the New World, the technical advancementeswere very interesting to see.

|It was 5 floors of fantastic exhibitions, describing the history of navigation in general as well as the role of Genoa. On the top floor there was a very impressive display based around emigration(Italians leaving) and immigration (people arriving more recently from many countries). It was impressive because it presented the stories of immigrants to Italy in a very sympathetic way. Genoa is home to many migrants, and this display was focused on building tolerance and understanding.

There was also a large section dedicated to the experience of Italians who emigrated to the Americas. The boats that transported them there left from the quay on which the museum was built.

Visitors could look up all sorts of information about families who had emigrated.

On the top floor there was an exhibition devoted to the sinking of the luxury liner the  Andrea Doria in 1956. It was excellently curated.

Some similarities with the Titanic - it was a luxury liner that as built in 1953,  very innovative and stylish for the time. It marked the rebirth of Italian elegance and lavishness. Unfortunately it sank after a collision with another ship. The rescue mission was heroic, but many lives were lost. A video on YourTube here tells the story.

 

Exploring Genoa - the Rolli palaces

Wednesday we explored the famous Via Garibaldi, now a pedestrian street where there are a gazillion palaces jammed all in a row: Palazzo Rosso, Palazzo Bianco etc etc all built by rich people to boast about their wealth and to entertain foreign dignitaries with the intention to have stable international relations. Gave the exploration of these places full of ostentatious furniture a miss. We were satisfied with looking at them on line. They are impossible to photograph because they are tall, and on top of each other.

Here is a link to get an idea of their size and nature, and below, some of my attempts to photograph them.

 

Here are some photos of just the entrance hall to a palace that is now a bank - 

And there were little delights to be glimpsed through every open  door.

And traces of the former splendour were everywhere

Pesto Genovese

In the window of the shop called Pestobene (good pesto) there is a electric mortar and pestle machine that mashes this wonderful green gold which is sold to the stream of customers who queue from opening to closing time.

Of  course we bought a jar, added it to pasta  and had a delicious dinner.

I also had it for lunch at a little shop, and Sue had a ragu

 

The medieval streets of Genoa - the carruggi

 We knew when we booked it  that our accommodation was in  a small alley. The owner made it quite clear in the listing that along the street there were ‘working girls’, but they were just going about their business . And that was the case. Below is the alley where we had the apartment, the working women hovered in doorways.

Below, other alleys

What we had not fully grasped was that we were right in the middle of a collection of palaces that were on the ‘must see’ list of places to see. If we turned right when we left the apartment we were among some of the most sumptuous and palatial UNESCO listed buildings in the world. Turn left and we were in the narrow alleys and the dark and dingy world of the prostitutes, Indian tailors and small businesses run by immigrants. We were also a couple of  blocks from the port.

I pride myself on having a good sense of direction, but I got hopelessly lost not just once, but several times.

The carruggi date back to medieval times - they form a labyrinth, and the buildings are up to 8 stories high, and this height is at times overwhelming.

While we had read that Genoa was grungy and potentially dangerous, we felt safe the entire time. The famous small streets or ‘carruggi’ have been a bit gentrified (there was graffiti protesting about this) and a ‘danger’ was being walked into by tourists on their phones, or running the gauntlet of a herd of tourists off a cruise ship on a guided tour. 

The  old traditional trade and  artisan shops in the streets named after them ,  "street of the butcher/ the ironworker/baker etc" have become consciously part of the cultural heritage and are presented as such.

The coffee roasters

The delicatessan

On many corners there are niches with devotional items

Above, on the corner of te street of hope and the Smaller Street of Iron 

Genoa

Arrived in Genoa around midday, and immediately started exploring the city.  Passing the imposing statue of Christopher Columbus at the station we knew  immediately that we were in the great city from where ships headed off across the ocean to the great unknown.

First impressions were of massive buildings, a sense of grandeur, and a distinct elegance. No wonder the city is called La Superba.

First stop while we filled in time before we could check in to accommodation was the Basilica della Santissima Annunciato del Vasto, a massive church in which the richness of the city ancestors was evident. (check out the pictures in the link above)

The restored  Last Supper of Procaccini almost rivalled that of Vasari in Florence.

The lavish decoration of the church  was magnificent, but a mere tater for what was to come in the old town: Baroque churches on what seemed every second corner: too many stunning works of art and decorations to enumerate.