Genoa / Genova

 Thursday Oct 12

To get to Genoa we took the same train as the one to Alba. After a short down-hilll walk from train station we reached our apartment located at the end of the Galleria Giuseppe Garibaldi (tunnel). It was immense with an upstairs loft complete with huge bathroom (separate bathroom downstairs). After dropping off our luggage we went to lunch at Ristorante Gala Vino e Cucina, a nearby cafe (small family place). We enjoyed:

• White trofiette with classic pesto, green beans and potatoes
• Seabass rolls in lettuce leaf on shell fish cream
• Baked stuffed anchovies on bean cream
• 1/2 liter wine
• Blancmange with Kentish cherries and fresh basil

After lunch we took the elevator from the middle of the galleria up to Belevedere Montaldo for some views over the city and harbor.

Friday

The splendor of the Palazzos of Genoa (referred to as the Palazzi dei Rolli) was recognized by awarding them to host visiting aristocracy…with no option of refusal. In 1576 the palaces were entered on the roles (Rolli) recognizing their varying levels of magnificence and required to host visiting dignitaries or corresponding rank. UNESCO recognizes 42 Palazzi dei Rolli, among the 100 existing ones. Genoa celebrates its Palazzi dei Rolli with the Rolli Days. For two weekends a year these palaces are opened to the public and uncover their treasures. We were there for one of the two weekends. Unfortunately they were totally sold out. Luckily we could visit a couple on Friday. We chose Villa Rossi (Red) and Villa Bianco (White). 

Visiting them required navigating the Caruggi, a labyrinth (the largest in all of Europe) of shady alleyways, up and down the hillsides of the city. 

We stopped for lunch at Il Cadralo:

• Cono acciughe, totani e panissa fritti / Cone of fried anchovies, squid and bite-sized chickpea fritters
• Minestroni con pesto / Minestrone with pesto
• Coniglio alla ligure / Rabbit ligurian style

We had left our stash of snacks in the fridge in Torino so in the afternoon we went out to shop for our breakfasts and snacks. However we were not inspired by the breakfast options at Carrefour.

Saturday

We were more successful shopping for breakfast pastry in the morning and found some great foccaccia too. We had no luck at the Acquarium, it was fully booked for the day.  We opted to see the Biosfere (birds & butterflies) and walked around the historic center and Old Port. Some interesting architecture plus a replica Pirate Ship (Vascello Neptune made for the movie Pirates). The decoration of exterior walls of the Palace of St George were quite impressive.

Lunch was at Soho near the port.

• A LVNAE Vermentino
• Trofie pasta with Genoese pesto
• Ravioli stuffed with sea bassin a sauce with olives, pine nuts and dried tomatoes
• Grilled mixed seafood with veggies of the season

Sunday

We arrived early to the Aquarium and had no difficulty in getting tickets. It features many fish, touch areas, sea horses, rays, frogs, turtles, a lizard that camouflages itself in green leaves, jelly fish…

We had planned to go to a restaurant and then shop. But then we discovered that most shops are closed on Sunday. It also seems everyone goes out to eat (with reservations...yes we encountered this in Milan, but did we learn? No.) We struggled to find a restaurant but stumbled on Il Tondin and were treated to an excellent lunch:

• RAKA a blend of Sangiovese, Merlot, Canaiolo nero, Tenuta Olmarello, and Castelnuovo di Magra
• The bread was habit forming
• Carpàccio with parmigiano & porcini
• 'E ravieu de sûcca - Ravioli stuffed with pumpkin, with butter, sage, Prescinsêua cheese cream and crunchy hazelnuts (Prescinsêua is a fresh cheese of the Genoa region)
• I ravieu au toccu - Ravioli with Ligurian sauce of shredded pieces of meat, tomato and pine nuts.

On our way back to the apartment we stopped into the Basilica San Siro. We'd walked by it a number of times and it was time to take a peek. A lovely place. 

After a little packing effort we decided to checkout the panoramic views from the overlook accessible from the nearby Funiculare Zecca-Righi. It turns out that Genoa is surrounded by lots of green countryside to the north and the working harbor to the south. Genoa may be on the Italian Riveria but it isn't all that near to the picturesque bits. This overlook is best as a starting point for some promising hikes, not so much for views. Note for a sense of scale, the castle in the collage below might be interesting to visit but it is quite far away. That photo was taken with Bill's 80x zoom lens and then cropped. 

We returned to the apartment to finish packing for the move to Menton France.