A day in Marseille

We took a trip to the big city this week, and it didn't disappoint, I tell you what.  My host mom had an appointment in Marseille on Monday.  She invited me to come with her, and then do some sightseeing after.  It's about the same travel time by train or car, so we took the train, since parking is expensive/impossible in Marseille.  As in most large cities (cough Seattle cough).

I love using the underground and train systems.  I don't know why, really, since they're dark and frequently smelly, and full of people who are in a hurry.  And frequently people who are smelly.  But there's something about getting on the train with people coming from all directions, whose lives intersect for a moment on a train ride.  I always wonder where they're coming from and where they're going, and what they ate for breakfast, and weird stuff like that.

So we went to our appointment first, in an apartment building with a doorbell that played Dixie.  Afterwards, we took the trolley down to the main city center by the docks to hang out.

It doesn't get much fresher than this!

Marseille basically exists because of its harbour. It's the second largest city in France, after Paris, and one of the oldest.  It's first official settlement was founded around 600 BC by the Greeks, although it was settled looong before, and it has been conquered and re-conquered many times since.

It's a center of commerce, and has ships coming in from all over the Mediterranean.  We walked through a street market selling fruits and vegetables from France and Spain and Africa.  The food stands smelled incredible, cooking pizza, and bread, and Tunisian food.  We were both pretty hungry, but we were able to hold out until we got to a restaurant by the water.

Moules frites.  Yes they served me my fries on a slate tile.

The waterfront is lined with restaurants, no big surprise, with a boardwalk in a U shape around he harbour.  The side of the U that we were on was more for the vacationers and tourists, with the other side being a little dressier, evening-out-ie.  Every restaurant along the waterfront's specialty was Moules Frites (mussels and fries), so of course I had to try them.  I mean, I doubt I would find a better moules frites than right here.  I should point, though, out that I'm a leeetle teeny tiny bit squeamish when it comes to seafood.  I don't like when there are eyes or unidentifiable appendages, or if it tastes, y' know, fishy.  (I like fish, but there are lots of other kinds of seafood that are not my favorite thing to eat).  I won't lie, I preferred the fries.  I love fries.  But the mussels were juicy, and garlicky, and actually tasted pretty good!  I would eat them again!  I call that a win.

Our next plan was to take a water taxi across the harbour to the other side of the U.  However, the taxi was closed right then, so we walked through the Old Town area for a bit instead.  Except for the restaurants, pretty much everything closes for a couple of hours in the middle of the day in France, for lunch.  (That may be less true in the cities, ie: the shopping stayed open, but it's definitely true in the villages!)

A wonderfully old door, which
is also telling me that
it's time to dance

I can't believe I didn't get a good picture showing just how OLD these buildings and back streets are!  We stopped in a small store selling olive oil soap that looked like it had been there since the Greeks.  It felt like a cavern, and you could see down into what looked like an old cellar that was storing their soap inventory.  The stairs everywhere were worn and grooved, the doors had intricate latches and hinges.  It was fascinating.  But the area is also still very much in use.  We stopped to look in a couple of consignment shops, we passed a school with kids yelling in the playground.  It's definitely worth exploring, if you ever visit Marseille.  Just go up the stairs next to the Town Hall (you can see them in the picture at the bottom) and veer left.  Just don't get lost up in there.

I wish we could have checked this out a little more
It says undARTground and has this amazing drawing
on the outside.  People were going in as we passed, and it
all looked very cloak-and-dagger, if you know what I mean.

The Marseille Eye!  And, a giant red shoe. 

After that, we took our water taxi for a quick trip across the water, and then did a little shopping.  I love shopping in Marseille!  There are so many shops with all different styles, ranging from the cheapest of the cheap to much higher end things.  There's so much to just wander around and look at!

And then what trip to Marseille would be complete without a run in with a pickpocket, yes?  I actually caught one with his hand halfway in my purse as I was paying for a drink at a market!  The audacity!!  It was a small store and we were all crowded around the register, I left my purse open as I looked up for a moment to hand the clerk my money...  Classic situation.  (Don't worry, he didn't get anything).  It's sad that stereotype is so true, but there it is.  My host mom even told me to not wear jewelery because it would get stolen right off me.  Oh well, the perils of places you're not familiar with.  It turned out all right in the end, lesson learned.  And regardless, I had a great time in Marseille, and would definitely love to spend some more time here!

City Hall, looking out across the harbour.  One of the
oldest buildings in the city.
  You can kind of see the boardwalk area in
the lower left hand corner of the picture, and the stairs
to the right that lead up into the old town area.