Genoa - Italy
Trip Start
Jul 30, 2007
1
7
25
Trip End
Nov 2007
Genoa,
Italy
Saturday, August 18, 2007
We get up at 0700 for a change and its all systems go, shower and change, pack up the caravan and we are out the gates before 0900. it's a pretty easy straight drive to Genoa and the tolls are considerably cheaper than France. We have to drive the caravan through the city which was fun, I got my first real taste of scary Italian drivers surrounding you with the caravan and car and you trying not to hit anyone. ROB - I defy anyone to improve on Italian drivers, they have a knack of turning any two way road into a six way road, manage to smoke, drink AND use the phone at the same time Tom-Tom the navigation programme suggested we go down a road which was impassable, I decline, we then spend 5 minutes winding up and down the hill surrounding the port city, try to go down a road which has a blue and white arrow (indicating its ok) and have the locals yell we cant go down there just in the nick of time before I have committed too much
Entertainment in Genoa!!
. We find the site with a sorry we are full sign, Rob goes and asks anyway and I wish I had rung the site that day but Rob didn't think it was necessary, Captain safety is becoming Captain laidback very quickly which is great. Luckily they had some departures so we got a pitch, set up. Its hot, 34 degrees and as we arrive when everything has closed we join the locals in a siesta before heading on foot down to the promenade in the area we are staying in, west of the city centre. We walk up and down before hitting a sea side café and settle in for a drink. Rob gets the added bonus of watching the local women sunbath and sit around in swimmers and more often than not a lot less. ROB - I would like to point out that the woman I was watching was fifty years older than my mum, had a skin like a prune, and it was her exercise thrusts that had caught my attention - not a pretty sight!!! Much to my amusement they are all old and or rather plump with bits and pieces on display which produces defeated sighs from him. Rob has this luck, I took him to Hooters for lunch in Canada as he couldn't take his eyes off the ladies there, only to be served by a lady in her 30s who looked like she had had 5 kids, the second time he was served by a man in drag, drunk on his stag do in full uniform, and on my first trip to England a girl about 5 foot 1 high and round tried to chat him up and demonstrated her womanly wiles by attempting to get up on a bar stool in a very short skirt and high cut top with humorous consequences. We should have known, on the way there we saw the worst swimsuit on the worst women we had both ever seen. HIGH cut bottoms, and I'm talking only a strip over the necessities, not very pleasant. But we have a few drinks and enjoy the sea and the sun, before heading home via the shops and heading back up the steep hill back to camp. Rob sets up his x-box and TV while I set about making dinner, a gourmet feast if I don't say so myself, along with a salad I prepare zucchini with a stuffing and eggplant (just for me) along with a chicken and bacon rap thingy we bought at the supermarket
Isn't it pretty???
. Its too complicated for a man, especially one focused on taking over the world or some such thing on the x-box so lighting the BBQ I begin. It was all going so well until the flames started soaring, the bacon fat setting the whole thing ablaze, even turning the gas off didn't help until I removed the bacon and continued. But the end result wasn't too bad, we watch a DVD and head off to bed. 19/8/07 Day 21
A day of great plans and greater disappointment. We head off later in the day with plans to catch the ferry to Genoa central, see the sights, have dinner out and returning by bus. Finally working out the transport system we set off with plenty of time to spare before the ferry leaves, backpack on with warmer clothes for this evening, Rob dreaming of pizza and myself of pasta that awaits us for tea. The ferry port isn't too busy when we get there but builds quickly, one the boat arrived it was elbows out, double handed pushing and angry words to everyone who surrounded them. The locals did not show themselves in the best light, but finally we get pushed on with only a few insults directed at us, the Englishman beside himself with thoughts of orderly polite queuing that we are used to. We don't manage to push on early enough to sit outside but find a spot near the exhaust pumps which added to the warmth, but at least we were outside and ready to see the city by the water. The moment I got off I remarked to Rob that was the ugliest ferry journey I had ever taken, the best defence Rob could come up with was that it was interesting to see
It rains in genoa too
. The scene that surrounded us was a airway runway and a wave break on one side, 3 meter high cement that prevented any glimpse of the sea or horizon and on the other rusty boat docks on the other with derelict building and abandoned cargo boxes. This city was blocked by cranes, rusty large boats and little else until the very end which was still very much a working port. ROB - Imagine Glasgow at the end of its life Perhaps if I had done some more in-depth research (like any) I would have realised this was a working port city with little value on aesthetics. We got off at the old port sight and keen to see the sights with tourist map in hand and a sense of purpose we set off. We arrived at the centre square which was very pretty, with large old ornate buildings and a central fountain which dominated it. Seeing the opera house the mayors residency and financial trade building. We then headed up to see Columbus's house, very unremarkable and no information in sight, we took a photo and headed off for millionaires row, a street where the wealthy entertained dignitaries for over 600 years. The red palace and old buildings joined by a narrow cobbled street had all the promise we were looking for. Walking down there were some stunning buildings with stone masonry which you cant help but spend time admiring, the building rising 4-5 stories high on both sides you feel the history and beauty of this street engulf you, just don't look down any of the adjoining roads or alleys or you will find filth, grime and smells which directly appose the opulent history you are admiring. This is a working town, with working class problems, poverty and real ghetto areas were common. The stones are black with centuries of dirt, voices yelling, people watching you and your bags as you walk, us trying not to provoke and walk swiftly on. We search for another area of the city with some history or at least some greenery to no avail. It appears we had found and seen the best of Genoa already and as we kept on walking in vain I think we were both thinking this isn't what we had hoped for. Finally I suggest we head back, the area we are staying in is obviously the best in Genoa other than the few areas we had found. We catch the bus back, its packed and all the normal rules and behaviours we were brought up with do not exist here. People stand where they want to, if that is at the entrance of the bus, then its you who has to push pass them to get on. It was quite a long trip back and twice I got a seat which I then gave to older people with a resounding disapproval of those around me which was only supported by the suspicious and rude elderly people who took the seat I had offered them. Oh well, I have just suggested to Rob that we leave here a day early, I think we have seen the best and worst of Genoa and the worst won. 20/8/07 Day 22
Rain.... Rain..... Rain.... Torrential rain.... Everyone stays inside. I blame Rob because he washed the caravan this morning when it was overcast and threatening rain, he blames me because I said it has rained in every campsite we have been to. Accomplished nothing.. Read, watch DVD, Rob plays X-box. Looking forward to Florence tomorrow.
