Medieval, Maritime & Movietime - Part II

Now, about the museum.

Genoa became an important port as early as the 8th Century.  The museum explained not only the history of the port, 

  

but about the evolution of ships, from 'coasters' that were beached on the sand next to the wharfs that constituted the port, to galleys and galleons, to vessels, to bricks or brigantines and so on, all the way  to a comparison of the characteristics of submarines built by different countries.  

  

Also, the development of navigational tools, what life was like on a ship if you were a galley slave or convict or working on a sailing ship.  

  

The food eaten on board, the goods being shipped, the role of cartography and the discovery of new lands, important persons involved in Genoese maritime affairs, loads of maritime paintings, naval battles, the shortening duration of a trans-Atlantic journey.  There was a whole section about immigration 

  

from Genoa, Italy's largest emigration port, to America.  

  

There were several life-sized ship 

 

exhibits we could walk around on.  Pictures were allowed  and pictures I took, to the point that Bill despaired of us ever leaving the museum.  

  

He was amazed at what all interested me enough to take a picture.  I thought it was all fascinating.  I knew also I would get too tired to see it properly if I stood and read every placard, so I took photos to read at home at my leisure...in the comfort of my computer chair.

 

One of the life-sized exhibits was of a submarine, but when we left the museum there was a real submarine we could go in and see.  

  

I surprised at how little this interested me, but perhaps I was satiated by then.

There was a viewing area on the top of the five-story museum giving some amazing views of 

  

the city of Genoa and pointing out various areas.  

  

Having a zoom lens on the camera was fun up there.

 

We spent most of the second day at this museum, but before heading back to the hotel we checked out this 

  


ship, which was visible in the harbour from a fair distance.  


 

Bill said it was a movie prop, so it's not like a piece of history or anything.


  

Still, it was intricately made and we had a blast climbing all over it and taking another million pictures.  

I've been rushing through, trying to finish up this trip, but I have one more post to finish.  I hope you aren't too fed up yet; I know I'm ready to be home again!