Buying a ticket for an elevator?
Genova was eerily quiet when we arrived, but that is what we get for arriving on a Sunday. This allowed us to leisurely walk it's black and white arcaded sidewalks getting a full view of the old mosaics below our feet. This ancient port has some wonderful palazzi which house art collection, the linked Palazzi on Via Garibaldi (Bianco, Rosso, and Toursi). After some terrible pizza, we enjoyed seeing artwork by Rubens and Van Dyke. But the highlight was not in the palazzi themselves. At the end of the day, gallery staff offered us and two other couples a chance to go to the Palazzo Rosso rooftop terrace (nobody else was around). An unexpected treat that few get to see. Viewing the city at sunset we had a 360 degree view from the shores to the mountain tops. Thanks, Palazzo Rosso staff!
We did our favorite Italy thing, and walked most of the city on our second day in Genova. After seeing some impressive striped churches, we hit Genova's Piazza Delle Feste. This is one of the few pedestrian friendly harbors we have found in Italy. With a unique mix of old and new architecture. TRL Italy was setting up their "On the Road" stage for next week. They must be reading our blog as they have been following us for weeks. We know this because Gabe has become a huge MTV Italy fan. They show Scrubs in Italian and it is still funny. As a result of watching TRL here he has become a huge Lee Ryan fan and screams his name every time we watch TRL.
After walking the harbor and eating more terrible pizza, we took a detour to see Christopher Colombus' house. This lead to getting terribly lost. We wandered a never ending parking complex, seemingly deserted and partially on fire, until we convinced a security guard to help us out. I asked if he spoke English and he replied "I am only in Italian." After a difficult conversation we thought we knew how to get back to the hotel. Twenty minutes later we should have been right in front of the hotel (according to the map). Funny thing is, Genova is a terraced city. When we looked over the railing on the side of the road we could see the roof of our 10 story hotel below us. At this point Gabe really needed to use the restroom, I mean really, as in gritting your teeth really. The situation was complicated as we could not find any stairs down to the street below. Eventually we found the elevator but you had to buy a ticket from a machine and get it validated before it would work. Luckily, we had correct change and could understand some of the Italian only instructions. Down one elevator, across the street and up another elevator and Gabe made it to the room, just in time (Just in time).
Our last day in Genova we day tripped to the Cinque Terre. Five fishing villages famously linked by a wonderful 11kms hiking path along the sea. If you have ever watched Rick Steves you have heard and ear full about them. In Rome we met some Aussies who kept calling them the Chingkee-Terry. It took us a while to figure out what they were talking about but once we did it was hard not to call them that for the rest of the trip. We almost didn't go as it was raining and hailing in Genova. Once we arrived in Riomaggiore it was clear that the weather was the least of our worries. Even out of the heavy season the trail was mobbed with ragazzi (Italian school children) and German hiking tours. The ragazzi are only a problem if you get caught in the middle of their swarm or impromptu soccer match (ball not needed anything they can kick will work). The German hiking tour can be a bit more problematic. Everyone on these tours has huge ski-pole walking sticks (two each). One the trail they look like a huge thousand legged centiped that wont ever stop to let anyone pass, even if other have to wait hours and hours. The most humorous moment of the day was watching the ragazzi and German hikers pile out of the train in to the tunnel at Riomaggiore and try to exit in opposite directions. Like a large oil painting of the Tuscan battles we viewed in Florence (carnage, grimaced faces, and lances everywhere).
Back to the hike. The views are like those of the Amalfi coast but you get to walk right on the edge of the cliffs (no broken bus seat). The water was rough and the sound of the crashing waves added to the entire experience. It started to rain in Vernazza (the fourth town) so we hopped on the train back to Genova. Our guidebook advises not walking in the rail and the slopes can get very slippery and dangerous. This did not stop the Germans and ragazzi. As a result the train was much quieter on the return trip.
A review- Pizza in the region of Liguria
Shilo's thoughts- Do not attempt eating this pizza here if you ever want to crap again.
Gabe's thoughts- How these people can create a doughy pizza that is burnt at the same time is one of the world's great questions. This place produces the worst pizza in Italy, if not the entire planet. Have the pasta with pesto instead. It is much better as they invented it, most likely so they didn't have to eat the pizza.
Shilo's additional thoughts- ...but don't eat the pizza with pesto on it. Extra bad on the digestive track.
Another lesson in Italian hand language- 1. Flatten your hand, palm down 2. Hold it at chest height 3. In front on your torso start a circular motion, curved down towards the bottom of your ribs, landing it with a chopping action.
This means stomach ache.
Shi and Gabe
6 votes 
