Genoa is like a theatre built around the Old Harbour bay and framed at the top by the Parco delle Mura, a park encompassing the old city walls. The ridge between the Polcevera and the Bisagno Valleys is a wild, natural and fascinating environment that differs greatly from the city beneath. Sparsely wooded, laced with powerful walls and 19th-century hilltop forts, loved by walkers and hikers, wind-swept, populated by wild animals and multicoloured butterflies, this peculiar landscape offers sweeping views from Corsica Island to the Maritime Alps. This green area lies right behind the city and includes meadow-land and hills ranging between 300 and 660 metres above sea level. It also offers a surprising feeling of freedom considering how close the metropolis actually is. It can be reached easily from the city centre at any time of the year, both with the Zecca-Righi cable-car (Funicolare Zecca-Righi) or by using the little Casella train. Alternatively, the park can be reached by mountain-bike and on foot. This piece of parkland comprises the 17th-century Mura Nuove (literally, New Walls) - the longest round of town walls in Europe - as well as a number of military fortresses built between the 17th and the 19th centuries. These are Forte Castellaccio, Forte Sperone (a venue for summer shows), recently–restored Forte Begato, Forte Puin and Forte Fratello Minore. To the north, at 800 metres above sea level, the round of fortifications is closed off by the majestic Forte Diamante, so called because of the diamond-shaped layout of its walls. Sadly, the fortresses are State property and therefore cannot be toured, except for rare special occasions.
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