GENOA and WALES

4th. July 2009 (cont)
Genoa

We tie up in Porto Antico, in the heart of the old town. this is a large city and seems such a contrast to the much smaller towns we have just been visiting.
We are interested in the architecture of the old , elegant buildings, many with frescoes and the history here. Most of the places we have visited recently have been under Genoese rule earlier in their history.
We explore the fascinating narrow alleyways with the very tall buildings either side of them, making some of them dark, but cool. The city centre is large and grand with the famous street, Garibaldi, branching off it. Here we pass several mansions and visit Palazzo Rossi, which is now an art gallery and is holding a free musical soiree'.

Via Garibaldi

We see two weddings with the brides wearing very elegant gowns.
Tonight we enjoy a delicious dinner sitting outdoors at the recommended restaurant Garibaldi.

Align LeftAlign LeftAlign Left5th. July 2009
Ross gets up early this morning to walk around the city to become better acquainted with it.
We hire a marina courtesy car. It is tiny and black, like a Noddy car. It proves very handy for parking. Ross drives and Russell navigates to venture up to the small village of San Desiderio for lunch at Bruxaboschi restaurant.
Getting there is a real challenge. Streets end abrubtly to become one way, and some streets aren´t named. We have many stops so Russell can ask for more directions, even though we have a print -off map from the computer.One very helpful man we ask invites us to follow him on his motorbike through a particularly difficult part.
Russell and Ross do a wonderful job and we arrive before the appointed time, so have a wander through this tiny and delightful village up in the hills above the city. The setting and cuisine for lunch are sensational. It is al- fresco under two very old horse chestnut trees trained over a strong trellis structure like vines. Many of the dishes are local and several of the specialties have unusual varieties of mushrooms.

Bruxaboshi Restaurant

This has been a long established family run restaurant for 148 years.We meet Granny who is 94 and cooked here until two years ago when she broke her hip. Our charming waitress is married to one of her grandsons. Sadly they are looking to move to Canada as they say there is no future in Italy now for their two daughters aged 8 and 11. They generously give us one of their recipe books for each couple. They claim they have never had Australians there before.
Coming back into Genoa we are trying to find Christopher Columbus´house where he may have been born, and definitely lived. This proves to be very ambitious but our intrepid driver an navigator get us there. Ironically it is very close to where we walked yesterday! Then we see some of viam20th. September, the main street with its grand buildings, archways, and its paths, some made with marble and some with mosaics.
Ross is really tested getting from here back to the port. We re so close, but so far with many one way streets and blocked off roads for pedestrians. Often he has to back in the narrowest of alleyways, with Russell out of the car guiding him. He is glad to have the car parked safely outside the marina office.
Early evening we take the boat from this part of the harbour to Marina Genova Aeroporto, about 4 n.miles north to tie her up there for 2 weeks..
We have had a wonderful time and so much fun with Russell and Lee. They certainly brought the best possible weather with them, and Impulsive didn´t miss a beat

6th. July 2009 .10th. July
Wales.
This morning we leave with Russell and Lee for Wales to see the first test match in Cardiff. This certainly will be different from sailing.
We have an hilarious time (in hindsight!) at the airport booking into Ryan Air. We all assume our luggage limit is 20kgs. when in fact it is only 15kgs. Ross is the only one just over, so Lee,Russell and I have to all try and fit some into our hand luggage., or we will be charged heavily for excess weight. Repacking at the airport isn´t the best fun, but we all manage to get by with no extra charge.
It is exciting flying over the English channel and then across to Stansted airport, seeing all the fields looking green and manicured.
We are driven for 3 hours from Stansted to Wales to Russell and Lees´friend´s home. Maggie and Alen are overwhelmingly hospitable. Chris and Bruce are arriving tomorrow and we are all staying at this magnificent property. We have a fabulous few days here and meet lots of people who were very welcoming.
Tuesday is a day for relaxing and enjoying the available facilities here, including the cricket machine and par 3 golf course. Tonight Maggie and Allen host a wonderful party with a marvelous entertainer, an accomplished pianist and singer. We particularly enjoyed the dancing. (There was scheduled a dinner tonight where Shane Warne was expected to speak. Unfortunately he didn´t honour this commitment but let the organizers down and accepted something else. This was thought of very poorly by many people.)
Wednesday is the first day of the test . There is quite an excitement when all the men head off for the first day of play.
We girls set off with Maggie and her friend, Connie for a day of exploring the south of Wales. Connie grew up in these areas and has a wealth of knowledge. It is lovely to see her relive her childhood as she takes us through all these places. Gary, our driver, also grew up in this area so adds "life" to some of the stories too.
We set off through the south of Wales, going west, through the old mining areas. We pass through the industrial Rhonda Valley, to the Neath area which is less industrial. We pass by many old stone, arched bridges on our way to Swansea, which was very industrialized but a lot of it has been reclaimed. There are scars and signs of the old mines along the way but Connie explains that the reclaimed areas have now mostly greened over.
The last national mine closed down in the 1980´s, with Margaret Thatcher and the power of the various strikes. The last private mine closed down last year.
Swansea was obliterared in the war, but is mostly rebuilt now.There is a lovely view over Mumbles bay from here, even though the tide is out.It is very tidal here and we are lucky to see the tide in here on the way home. We pass the well known St. Helen´s cricket ground, and many lovely parks.
We spend sometime in the Gower area, a peninsular which is a National Park. An icon of the Gower is the "Three Cliffs" on the Bristol Channel.

The three cliffs

There are many delightful, small villages. We enjoy driving along the narrow, winding lanes with their trimmed hedges, and the wild buddlhea and lilac growing everywhere. The countryside through this area is so picturesque.

View from the lane back along the coast

We have lunch at Worm Head in a small cafe overlooking a magnificent long stretch of surf beach, with some horses and riders cantering and galloping along.

The cliff top walk

Our next stops are Oxwich, a walk from Caswell Bay along the scenic cliff tops to Landlan Bay, and finally to Cowbridge for dinner at the Bear Hotel. This last town is lovely with lanes lined with small cafes and gorgeous flower pots everywhere.
Today we all go to the cricket and thoroughly enjoy the perfect weather, the hospitality and a great day´s cricket.
Ross has had a wonderful 2 days of cricket with the usual ups and downs including a classy century from Ponting.
Ist. ball of the 2nd. day of play

Australian supporters!

We have dinner tonight at the downtown Bay. This water was closed off 10 years ago and the waterside has been renovated with cafes and bars. It is now a very popular place in Cardiff.
We have a leisurely morning enjoying this lovely home before heading off in the train for London.