Italy Day 1 - Genoa

Genoa Harbour
Originally uploaded by European Dave

don't really know how to start.. prob coz i'm tired as i write this from the hostel computer in Turin.. guess that's what happens when you wake up early do as much of Genoa as you can - to be honest, once u do the Aquarium which is probably the best in the world i reckon, there isn't really much, but will say more a bit further down the blog - then catch the slow train to Turin. By slow train i mean the Trenitalia regionale trains which stop at all stops along the way.. add to slow, the train left Genoa Brignole station 15 minutes late and it wasn't the nicest of days in the Piedmont with low cloud making it pretty depressing to be honest - Italian countryside I'm sad to say isn't quite as scenic as France or even Britain (!)

Thank goodness that Turin or Torino to the locals, is quite a beautiful city, and probably the first not-as-big-as-Paris classical European city that I've seen.. will have to sightsee tomorrow with night time falling at 5ish nowadays but did walk around the piazzas and it does have so many beautiful churches, palaces and tons of shops - wonder what Milan would be like, being the shopping capital of Italy.. and also have realised that Italians probably consider lunch as their main meal.. otherwise why would a lot of the cafes serving the first and second courses of pasta be closed at 8 at night.. nevertheless won't really starve coz there are these bars which serve buffets that come with ur drink - apertifs they call them - and it only costs like 5-7 euros..

If Turin could be described as the finished cut diamond, Genoa probably the diamond when it was first found.. Bar Avenue XX Septembre which is Genoa's main shopping throughfare, not really a city you would venture alone at night esp on a Sunday when most places are shut anyway. And the old quarter near the port is definitely not a place for the faint-hearted to go romping alone in bright daylight let alone at night in the dark.. European cities have plenty of narrow streets with apartments and shops lining both sides to create this tunnel effect but Genoa's old quarter really takes it a bit too far with its high buildings added to the fact that it isn't quite a strict grid system with twists and sudden turns.. so u really may end up parked in the wrong corner if u get what i mean.. It was quite an adrenaline ride already walking through the old quarter with these women with busty chests on both sides of the street at 12 in the afternoon - was trying to get from San Matteo square to Via Garibaldi.. once i reached Garibaldi i welcomed myself back to the surface world..

Genoa is a bit of a frontier town i say.. worth a visit for the history and culture and the food is good and v cheap esp once u come from pricey France but just remember to avoid the Old Quarter at night and maybe the daytime if u're not of strong heart and mind.. Aquarium is a must-see, it's possibly the best in the world of its kind or at least in Europe, so is the waterfront..

Anyway will try and put up some photos.. just this particular computer didn't allow me to for some reason.. staying in this p nice hostel - it's part of Hostelling International so it has to be good - just too many kids.. will walk around Turin tomorrow..