23rd Workshop "From Objects to Agents" (WOA22)
Venue
The WOA workshop (September 1st and 2nd) will take place in Genova, at Casa Paganini - InfoMus, in the recently restored monumental building of S.Maria delle Grazie La Nuova.
Address: Piazza Santa Maria in Passione, 34
16123 - Genova (Italy)
The easiest way to reach the venue, that is on the top of a small hill and hence requires some (really minor...) climbing, is to take the metro and get off at "Sarzano - S.Agostino", then have a 5 minutes walk. Please note that the venue cannot be reached by car.
The WOA minischool (September 3rd) will take place at DIBRIS, Via Dodecaneso 35. If you come by public transportation please make sure to follow Google Maps' instructions for reaching "Chiesa dei padri Barnabiti" in Via Padre Semeria, you will find signs there: Google maps is not aware of a shortcut, and suggests wrong routes. If you take the bus number 17, you should get off at "EUROPA 1/OSPEDALE SAN MARTINO"; if you take the bus number 44, 45, 85, 86, 87 you should get off at "SAN MARTINO 2/PAPIGLIANO".
Accommodation
Any accommodation in the historical center of Genova, close to Piazza delle Erbe, the heart of the movida, is fine for reaching Casa Paganini: see some suggestions from Booking.com and from Airbnb. DIBRIS, the venue of the WOA Minischool, can be easily reached by bus from the historical center of Genova, so we suggest you to look for an accommodation downtown to be close to Casa Paganini, and take a bus on September 3rd only.
The University of Genova has agreements with some hotels for guests who attend events organized by UniGe: https://intranet.unige.it/convenzioni-hotel
Among these hotels, the closest to the venue are the Hotel Best Western City Hotel and the Best Western Hotel Metropoli, but any hotel close to a metro station is fine since Casa Paganini can be easily reached from the "Sarzano - S. Agostino" stop.
Please check with the hotel how to register in order to get the discounted price. Keep Viviana and Angelo in cc in your email to the hotel, mentioning that you will attend an event organized by us.
Where to...
Eat a great focaccia
Among the places close to the conference venue, one of the most known is the Panificio Patrone in Via Ravecca, five minutes from the conference venue, also mentioned in the Gambero Rosso ranking. If you dare to enter the caruggi, you might try Claretta and if you want to see a different part of the old town, Panificio Mario in Via San Vincenzo is also worth.
Drink a good coffee
Our preferred cafeteria is Tazze Pazze, that will offer a "Brasile" espresso to all WOA 2022 participants! It's located in Piazza Cinque Lampadi, a 6 minutes walk from the conference venue.
Enjoy a nice ice cream
Ice cream is a must in Genova and there are many high quality places where to enjoy it. The closest ones are Romeo Viganotti, that also has a pastry shop and a chocolate artisan production shop dating back to 1866, and Cremeria delle Erbe. If you are willing to face a longer stroll, you should try Gelateria Profumo that got the Gambero Rosso Tre Coni award in 2022. Profumo is open from Monday to Saturday, from 12.00 to 19.00 and has a well known pastry shop associated with, a few minutes walk from the ice cream shop.
Have a pleasant dinner
Most restaurants downtown have a reasonable quality but Genova is extremely expensive: make sure to check pricese before booking. We love Trattoria delle Grazie, that - in our opinion - prepares the best cappon magro in Genova, Le Rune, Soho, Maniman (you may reach it with the Zecca-Righi funicular, and get off at San Nicola station). In the Porto Antico area, we may suggest Il Marin (expensive!) or, if you want a cheaper solution in the same building and with the same beautiful view, Eataly.
What to do if you have...
30 minutes
Reach Campo Pisano with a five minutes walk and enjoy the silence and the medieval atmosphere of the small, almost unknown colorful square.
Reach Piazza San Matteo with a six minutes walk the tipical black and white strips of the buildings of the D'Oria family.
2 hours
Get lost is the Caruggi and recall how to leave them: down you reach the sea, up you reach the hills...
Take the ascensore di Castelletto Levante (free of charge, located in Piazza del Portello) and watch the roofs of the historical center of Genova from Spianata Castelletto.
Take the 42 bus and reach Boccadasse, a well preserved fishermen village 20 minutes with bus from the historical center of Genova.
Half a day
Take the Navebus from the Porto Antico area, discover Genova from the sea, and have a stroll in the nice village of Pegli.
Reach the wild countryside in the hills surrounding Genova just in a few minutes with the spectacular Funicolare Zecca-Righi (free of charge, located in Largo Zecca) and then, if you wear comfortable shoes, roll down and be back downtown with an amazing walk in the old creuze. Our preferred walks are via Vico delle Chiappe (from "ciappa", stone slab in the Genoese dialect), salita delle Chiappe, San Nicolò, l'Olivella, Piazza del Carmine (turning left when you reach the final stop of the funicular) and via Salita S.Simone, Salita Emanuele Cavallo, Salita S. Gerolamo (turning right).
Take a train and reach Nervi, where you can relax in the park and have a walk on the Anita Garibaldi promenade along the sea, with a view on Portofino mount.
One day
In one day you may visit the picturesque villages of Cinque Terre, in the eastern riviera, or Finalborgo and/or Albenga, in the western one (reachable by train). Many suggestions on beautiful medieval towns to visit can be found here: the medieval villages of Apricale, Castelvecchio, Zuccarello, all in the western part of Liguria, are definitely worth a visit but they are far from Genova and you need a car to reach them. Brugnato and Varese Ligure, in the eastern part, are also lovely, but again you would need a car to easily reach them.
More suggestions on visitgenoa.it