Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
streets of Via Cairoli, Via Garibaldi and Via XXV Aprile, and Porta Soprana - is famed
for its
caruggi
. As evidenced by the washing pegged on lines strung outside the build-
ings, these dark, almost cave-like laneways and dank, odoriferous blind alleys are largely
residential, with a sprinkling of bars, shops and cafes.
Particularly after dark, parts of the
caruggi
can feel somewhat unnerving. Although it's
not overly dangerous (especially compared with a decade ago), take care in the zone west
of Via San Luca and south to Piazza Banchi, where most of the old city's lowlife (prostitu-
tion, drugs and so on) concentrates. East of the piazza is Via Orefici, where you'll find
market
stalls.
Galleria Nazionale
ART GALLERY
(
www.palazzospinola.it
;
Piazza Superiore di Pellicceria 1; adult/reduced €5/3; 9am-8pm Tue-Sat, 2-8pm
Sun)
This gallery's paintings are wonderfully displayed over four floors of the 16th-cen-
tury
Palazzo Spinola
, once owned by the Spinola family, one of the Republic's most for-
midable dynasties. The main focus is Italian and Flemish Renaissance art of the so-called
'Ligurian School' (look out for Van Dyck, Rubens and Strozzi), but it's also worth visiting
to gape at the decorative architecture.
Museo delle Culture del Mondo
(Museum of World Cultures;
www.castellodalbertisgenova.it
; Corso Dogali 18; adult/reduced €6/4.50;
10am-6pm)
Towering over the western end of town,
Castello D'Albertis
houses an eclectic
museum showcasing artefacts collected by its globetrotting owner. The neo-Gothic edifice
was built in 1892 on the ruins of a much older castle for the Capitano Enrico D'Albertis,
who hauled back all manner of 'curiosities' from his extensive sea voyages.
Where else could you find a stuffed platypus, a fragment of the Great Wall of China and
a handful of sand from San Salvador (Columbus' first disembarkation point) in the same
cabinet? If you don't fancy the climb up to Corso Dogali, there's a lift from Via Balbi (€1)
to the castle gates.
MUSEUM
Porto Antico
NEIGHBOURHOOD
