Finding Nemo

Old Port

After so much talk here we finally are at the aquarium. The kids are fidgeting, Matteo wants to see the penguins and the sharks, Lorenzo the fish. The aquarium has various admission offers. We, after studying them all at the table (on Thursday in the canteen during the lunch break) opted for PianetAcquario which includes the aquarium (obviously), the hummingbird forest and the biosphere. To this package we added the City of Children (ticket purchased separately). It seemed to us a good compromise to get a good overall view. The others (Galata Sea Museum, submarine S518 Nazario Sauro, Bigo) seemed to us a bit too grown-up and therefore less suitable for the two little rascals. Genoa, fortunately, is not at the end of the world so we can always imagine going back when they're older.

To avoid: Focacceria Le Leccornie

It's in the Galleria Atlantide (Aquarium-Porto Antico). The focaccias leave something to be desired and the staff isn't very likeable. Outside there are dirty and unkempt little tables frequented by individuals of various kinds among whom we find homeless people, drunks, trans people, shady individuals and women of pleasure. A decidedly unsuitable environment for a lunch break.

AQUARIUM

nice inside, run-down outside, terrible and obscene the welcome from the staff (especially at the ticket offices). maybe we expected something more, maybe our expectations were higher than the final result, in any case the visit was very pleasant and we highly recommend it.

THE HUMMINGBIRD FOREST

at first it seems the classic rip-off. an environment that's not very big with a lot of vegetation where you'd think it's impossible to find even one hummingbird around. instead you're wrong. the hummingbirds are there and they even let you observe them well since they don't seem at all bothered or frightened by human beings.

BIOSPHERE

it's outside the aquarium, it's a glass and steel structure that houses within it 150 plant species and many animal species including amphibians, reptiles (where?), insects and birds. the tour is done very quickly but we did it several times trying to always discover new plants and flowers that escaped the first glance. among the animals that populate the Biosphere the Scarlet Ibis is the one we liked most.

THE CITY OF CHILDREN

The recreational-educational-creative centre is designed for children and young people (why not adults?) from 2 to 14 years. Its realisation follows the concept of the Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie in Paris (no kidding?). it's early afternoon, it's very hot and a walk under the scorching sun is not exactly the icing on the cake. Luckily there's a nice little train that takes us to the entrance without too much effort (and above all sweat). At the entrance the "little" Lorenzo is taken to the 2-3 year space, the "big" Matteo to the 3-5 space. The 3-5 space is characterised by the "mother of all games": the construction site..!. It's a real construction site made to measure for children. You have to put on the yellow protective helmet and then start playing with cranes, buckets, wheelbarrows, foam rubber bricks, rail carts and silos.

The educational goal of the game is the construction of the house of which at the start only the load-bearing structures exist. The goal of the children present is much more playful and consists in transporting and above all throwing the foam rubber bricks from the first floor of the building. Matteo spends most of the time in this section, apart from a couple of "spontaneous changes" towards the second most beautiful zone: hands in water. As indicated in the name itself the purpose of the game is to fill, decant and channel water using dams, mills and containers. The blue plastic capes provided are more of a formality than a real protection. No big deal, it's really hot and frankly I would have appreciated a bit of water on my feet and head too. Other spaces in which CAT & DVD had fun are the anthill, the soap bubbles and the digiwall.

The experience in this centre was very pleasant especially because of the lack of crowds which allowed the children to have a lot of space available. In the evening we have dinner at Pandemonio, one of the restaurants recommended by our hotelier. after a day spent at the aquarium and the city of children we didn't want to have dinner too far from the hotel. on our arrival (without a reservation) we were welcomed by the owner (a kind lady) who immediately had a table prepared for us (4 adults and 2 children) in the "Della Colonna" little room on the upper floor of the place. she was served by a very friendly and helpful girl (the owner used the formal 'lei' with her; unusual and elegant). we had trofie al pesto with potatoes and green beans (very good but we've had better) and chocolate tartlet with hot chocolate (perfect).

at the moment of goodbyes the owner, busy with other customers, said to us: "wait a moment because I want to say goodbye to you properly". to our surprise and immense pleasure we discovered that the goodbye was accompanied by a gift for the two little rascals: a celebratory t-shirt of the historic centre of Genoa. it doesn't happen every day (to tell the truth never) to be greeted in this way.

Review of:

Sori Beach

we ask our hotelier for the beaches most suitable for families with children where we can spend a day without going too far from the centre. besides this they must be equipped since we have none of the usual beach kit (besides of course swimsuits and towels). finally they must be along the railway line (we have Genova Principe station a stone's throw away). he excellently recommends the beach of Sori. there are several bathing establishments in Sori. we go to "LA ROTONDA" (Località Spiaggia lato Levante) for the simple reason that it seems the shadiest to us (but as is well known the sun moves..!). these are the prices applied (the children didn't pay, thank goodness..!). adult admission: €7 each. sunbeds (two): €9 each. umbrella (one): €5. 51 good euros just for having put the soles of our flip-flops on the wooden boards of the establishment.

congratulations..! that said the beach of Sori isn't a beach but a pile of stones..! the sea however is clean (in the morning) and is strangely warm (obviously we're not in the Caribbean). the sandwiches from the kiosk are good and appetising. kind and friendly the lifeguard, quite surly the girl at the cash desk. on our way back we stop at the Genoese focacceria. tiny place in which Yuri (Sara has moved to Milan) bakes the typical Genoese focaccia. the white focaccia is stupendous. very good the olive focaccia. normal the round white pizzetta (bought for my son Matteo). Excellent the Genoese Pandolce. in the evening we go to the restaurant La Volpe E L'Uva nearby, a stone's throw from the hotel.

Pippo

the last morning in Genoa we spend in the shade of the cathedral and the early afternoon taking a tour of the city on the now classic tourist little trains. to tell the truth we're not enthusiastic, we find it a bit ridiculous, but the heat doesn't allow us to tire the children out too much who moreover have eyes only for this colourful (but also aesthetically likeable) train waiting to be stormed. the tour is quite extensive, not bad and in the end we got a bit of air letting ourselves be carried through the streets of a city without a doubt enchanting that deserves to be visited.