25 Agosto 2015. August 25, 2015. Turin to Genoa.

Buon Pomeriggio (?) — Good Afternoon or maybe it is Buona serra…

Last night we walked back to the San Salavero neighborhood and it was lively with people out on the streets.. young and old. It stopped raining so the walk was pleasant.. cool and dry. Seemed as if people were sitting anywhere you could find a flat horizontal surface… And yes, the neighborhood is very diverse — passing Halal stores, Indian restaurants, Mideastern groceries, many bars, and cafes… We found Sannabue pretty easily.. It’s on a corner and given that it is summer they have a huge outdoor area out front (as does every other eaterie), but we were seated inside which was fine. It’s a really eclectic place — seating cheek to jowel — not much real “decoration”… but filled with all sorts of memorabilia — from old typewriters just sitting on top of books, posters, photographs, etc. The food did not disappoint.

Started out with a little tiny amuse bouche (don’t know what they call it in Italy) that came to the table gratis.. tonight it was a spicy and very creamy and yummy gazpacho. Then we moved quickly (well not really quickly since nothing really goes fast when you are eating in Italy).. to the appetizer “tartare three ways” (veal, beef, and we think rabbit– but not certain — didn’t matter they were all great).. then we had primi which was eggplant parmesan and a botoni pasta stuffed with rabbit cacciatore sitting on a very light tapenade… and then we had the special fish (mackeral, we think) in a sort of squid ink and greens.. And we topped it all off with tiramussu.. All shared, so while we are definitely full.. many people were having that by themselves.. Oh of course a carafe of local wine. Strolled back to round off our walking today at about 7 miles (I have an app that calculates walking.. so I check at the end of each day.)..

 Agosto 25…

Busy day in Turin…

Started off walking to the Museo of Reunification.. Museo Nazionale del Risorgimento Italiano… not so much for the exhibit, but for the space and the courtyards which were pretty spectacular. And seeing the city and the very streets we had walked just the night before in the rain.. now in wonderful sun was a treat. The whole city (which had looked pretty good in the rain) looked fantastic in sun. We then strolled on Via Po to reach the Mole Antonelliana — the symbol of Torino.. It’s named for architect.. Alessandro Antonelli… It started out as a synagogue and then they ran out of funds so the city bought the building and completed the construction.. It’s a bit of a mish mash with a square dome and a very tall spire. The city hosts a competition (or so it seems from my non-Italian ‘reading’ of the signs).. to come up with symbols and creative ideas to promote the structure.. And there are two-dimensional graphic reproductions everywhere with funny images inserted into the building shape. .. Well we wanted to go to the top of the spire where there is a balcony with a great overall view of the city… but alas the Mole is closed on Tuesdays. So we strolled around the area.. and walked down to the River Po.. across one bridge and onto the other side.. and then walked to the next bridge and went back .. passing a synagogue that was locked and fenced and guarded by Italian soldiers.. Seemed like it dated to the 1850s or so. Apparently there are 900 Jews in Turin out of a population of about 750,000….

Then we strolled back to the hotel taking a rather circuitous route to see some other neighborhoods.. grabbed lunch at an outdoor cafe in one of the zillions of piazzas.. and then headed to the hotel to get our bags and the car to head to Genoa.. OK.. Turin.. now one of my all-time favorite cities.. right up there with the best of them.

Headed to Genoa.. with a quick stop at Eataly — an homage to Italian cooking and food… We strolled the aisles, bought some interesting pestos.. and chocolates and then headed on the road south and east.. The drive to Genoa was through beautiful countryside on various parts of the Autostrada — but oh how pleasant not to have any billboards anywhere.. It was a two-hour drive that took us through 76 tunnels.. an amazing feat to have built those roads through the mountains. It’s a road we drove many years ago.. in incredible shape — America can learn alot.. and Seattle should probably have hired these guys to deal with the “Big Bertha Project” that has been stalled for two years and is already over-budget by about ten-fold.

And then we arrived in Genoa, a city we had visited briefly in the 90s and of which I have little memory. My very first and probably unfair reaction — it’s a chaotic, gritty, port town. We had trouble figuring out how to stop the car at the hotel (Bristol Palace in the centro) because it is on an extremely busy city that feels like Times Square although the building and the streets surrounding it date to the early 19th Century… Our room is huge, but decorated in strange wall papers and a very busy wood floor pattern.. The bathroom is large enough to host a mid size party.. So Mike double parked on a side street along with dozens of other double parked cars.. and I walked the two blocks back to the hotel to find out how we drop off our bags and what we do with the car.. Naturally, you just drive the car up on the sidewalk and bring in your bags and then when the staff has time they park the car!.. After all it is Italy. But the whole building lacks the grace and taste of the Grand Hotel Turin… I have a feeling that Genoa will not be one of those “can’t wait to return cities” — but maybe tomorrow with some rest it will all seem better.

We took a taxi (couldn’t wait to ditch the car) to Antico Osteria del Bai for dinner — an old restaurant down by the sea.. Food was good, but I’d say overpriced.. It was also remarkably empty. Taxied back and now ready to call it a night.

Buon Notte.

Fern