Genial Genoa

Ah Genoa, our last stop on our Mediterranean cruise! (If you're just tuning in, catch up starting with our first day's voyage - Amersterdamin'.) By this point, Hubs and I were averaging 10 miles a day on foot. We'd celebrated with bottle of wine (or beer) in each port, of course! And you know what, I'm going to be honest with you... I'd planned so much for each city thus far that by the time we got to Genoa, I told hubs we'd just wing it.

I was up early enough to catch this beautiful sunrise over Genoa's hillside!

As per usual, we were up and 'atem early - soaking up the sunshine and coffee before we made our way down to disembark from the ship. Since we had no real plan, we just sort of meandered towards the "Old Port" (or Porto Antico) and inadvertently made our way through the open air flea market. Definitely a unique experience where you can find almost anything you'd desire. We kept on along our way until we found the port. There was a ton of restaurants and even a ride called the "Bigo" which is an "elevated lift" where you get get great panoramic views of Genoa. Near the Bigo, there's an open courtyard with tons of restaurants and coffee shops. People had their dogs off leash running around before it filled with pedestrians. It really was idyllic sitting on a bench next to the Mediterranean, drinking coffee and  watching locals get ready for their day. I kept thinking, maybe I'm meant to live near the water. Hey, a girl can dream!

This building caught my eye

You have to keep your eyes open, it's like a treasure hunt! 

Beautiful views in Porto Antico

Here's one from the Port looking back at the city. The sphere is part of the aquarium.

More cool architecture!

Who doesn't want to go for a ride on that bad boy?

Porto Antico was very beautiful

Even though the views were incredible, we decided it was time to move on. We backtracked a bit towards the boat before turning inland to find Genoa's Cathedral. It was incredibly beautiful from the outside and the brief moment I spent inside. One thing to know if you plan on visiting cathedrals - you can't wear shorts, it's considered disrespectful. Silly me had forgotten this while I was getting dressed for our adventure and I wanted to show respect.

Views from our walk to the Cathedral

No other words except stunning... 

Next, we walked towards the Church of San Matteo, which again was amazing from the outside but I wasn't able to get more than a quick look inside the doors. Nevertheless, we kept on. Not too far up the hill, we stumbled upon the Piazza De Ferrari. The pictures don't do it justice, this piazza was incredibly beautiful.

An example of the "caruggi" - narrow streets

Church of San Matteo is another beautiful church

So happy I was able to poke my head inside and grab this quick shot

Another ornate piece of sculpture captured from our journey

Piazza De Ferrari - it was stunning!

We were too early for lunch, but this place looked good!

Fountain close up!

One thing to know before heading to Genoa, it's windy streets (or "caruggi") can make it very easy to get lost. Luckily for me, hubs is an amazing navigator... without him I might still be stuck in Genoa trying to find my way! After we had our fill at the Piazza Ferrari, we made our way to the Piazza Corvetto - are you sensing the luxury car theme here?!? On our left, there was a beautiful monument which turned out to be a tribute for Guiseppe Mazzini who was an activist for the unification of Italy in the 1800's.

As we were leaving the piazza

Another building that caught my eye

Piazza De Corvetto

The monument to Guiseppe Mazzini 

After pausing momentarily to bask in the beauty of the monument, we noticed a path leading up into a park - Park Viletta Di Negro. Since we didn't really have much of a plan, we figured why not. As we followed the path up the steep hillside, we started to notice just how high above the city we were. Each turn held a more spectacular view than the last until finally we reached the top. If you love panoramic views, this is the place for you. We were able to see tons of the city but also even spotted the cruise ship off in the distance.

A look facing the hills of Genoa

Not the best shot but there's our boat

Beautiful cityscape

Another view of the city

Cruise ship through the flowers

Selfie!

I thought this was a cool keyhole view of the city

We stayed for a while soaking in the sunshine and city views while we decided what to do next. Even though it was still early, we had already walked over ten miles and we were starting to get tired. Despite the aching legs, we decided to press on and explore more "caruggi" or narrow alleyways that are typical from the Italian medieval towns. From the park, it was easy to find one of  Genoa's infamous "shopping streets" where the alleys are line with tiny shops and street vendors. Hubs was nice enough to let me window shop as we ambled down the caruggi back towards the ship. I even managed to purchase a couple of items to take home as souvenirs.

I love this bridge and all the greenery

More beautiful architecture

One last shot of the Italian coast

Soon enough though, we were walking back towards the ship for the last time. Our feet were tired and our stomachs were hungry but I remember how happy we were. We were chatting about all the sites we'd seen and discussing which day had been our favorite. We talked about the future and where our next voyages would take us. This may sound silly, but I often have a hard time living "in the moment." I tend to think about what lies ahead or dwell on looking back at what I could have done differently. But in those moments, we were just two people holding hands and exploring a new city.

By the time we made it back to the boat, it was time for a late lunch. Hubs opted for a nap and I read by the pool for a few hours. Soon enough, we'd be back in Rome for the last leg of this voyage. And that's where I'll leave you... until next week! Ta ta for now!