Making the rounds in Genoa is a continuous series of astonishing
moments, visions and encounters. In its lanes and piazzas one
can smell the fragrances of a history marked by Genoa’s skillful
mariners and astute traders that traversed the Mediterranean.
Much of the city’s historic center is delineated by the
so-called Strade Nuove or New Roads (Via Garibaldi, Via Cairoli
and Via Balbi), where the Palazzi dei Rolli –UNESCO World
Heritage Site – stand. So many of these palazzi have painted
Genoa in the light of its illustrious past: from Palazzo San
Giorgio, entirely frescoed; to Palazzo della Nuova Borsa in the
main Piazza De Ferrari; without forgetting the Ducal Palace, one
of the oldest among them and currently location for prime
cultural-artistic exhibits. Characteristic is the Porto Antico
area – its narrow roads, mixed architecture, Classical and
neoclassical palazzi, even edifices more Oriental in appearance.
Jutting out from the skyline is the most important place of
Catholic worship for the city, the Cathedral of San Lorenzo.
Built between 1100 and 1400, the structure is composed of both
Gothic and Romanesque components.
There's a lot more.
