Blogs from Marseille, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France, Europe - page 7

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Europe » France » Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur » Marseille November 10th 2009

Ah Marseille. A city where motorbikes think footpaths are roads and dogs think they're toilets. (You seriously wouln't believe the amount of dog poo I've seen traipsed along the streets here.) It's a pretty city from on high looking across it, but walking around it isn't the most pleasant of experiences. And can you believe as I was walking through a park a totally normal looking guy turned around and decided a particular bush looked like a great urinal. He was in full view of everyone in the park and on the road! Weird. One of the first things I noticed were posters everywhere about an exhibition at the Musee Cantini showing David, Klimt, Toulouse-Lautrec and Degas among others. What caught my attention was the picture of 'Ellen Terry in the role of Lady Macbeth' by ... read more
Notre Dame de la Garde detail
Palais Longchamp
On the island of If

Europe » France » Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur » Marseille November 10th 2009

As I had mentioned, we literally happened upon a bus that was leaving for Marseille in 1 minute, so in no time we were on our way. The trip itself was uneventful and in perhaps 45 minutes we were dropped off in the city right at the Arc de Triomph - yes, apparently Marseille needed its own. The oldest city in France, Marseille is second population-wise only to Paris. Its port is also the 2nd largest in Europe, so this was certainly going to be a change from little old Aix. Now we were all a bit apprehensive of spending 2 full days in the city seeing as all the guidebooks described it as, in so many words, a garbage dump. "Nitty", "gritty", "dirty", "real", and "ethnic" were among the adjectives we came across to describe ... read more
Fountain at Longchamp
Arc de Triomphe
L'eglise des Reformes

Europe » France » Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur » Marseille October 11th 2009

Salut tout le monde !!! Déjà notre dernière journée à Marseille. Depuis les dernières nouvelles ... Vendredi soir, nous décidons d'aller souper dans un petit resto suggéré par notre guide Routard, Les Akolytes, face à la Plage des Catalans. Super concept de tapas, alors on choisit quelques plats et on commande dont un filet de LOUP. En bon Québécois, on se dit "DU LOUP ... Cool, goutons à ca, on savait pas que ca se mangeait" Quelques minutes après, on allume que c'était propablement plus une sorte de poissons que du loup, LOUP. Ceux qui nous connaissent bien savent qu'on est loin d'être des amateurs de poissons; mais bon, c'était très bon ... peut-être même le meilleur des 3 plats commandés. hihi Bon, hier, on décide d'y aller pour une excursion dans les calanques. Le temps ... read more
Vue d'une petite anse
Vue d'un cap
Rocher sur le bord de la mer

Europe » France » Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur » Marseille October 10th 2009

Caught the light one evening... read more
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SDC12487

Europe » France » Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur » Marseille October 9th 2009

Salut à tous! Nous sommes maintenant à Marseille après 10h de train la veille. Notre hôtel situé sur le bord de la mer nous offre une vue magnifique. Nous avons débuté notre visite aujourd'hui par une promenade dans le Vieux-Port parfumé de la douce odeur de poissons frais. Par la suite, nous avons observé Marseille du haut de Notre-Dame-de-la-Garde. Nous avons terminé l'après-midi sur la plage au beau soleil en pensant à vous. Heureusement pour nous, la température de l'eau était encore agréable. Toutefois, la seule personne présente en monokini était probablement âgée d'au moins 60ans. Demain, direction les Calanques. Ben et Véro... read more
Marseille vue de Notre-Dame-de-la-Garde
île d'If
Nous deux...

Europe » France » Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur » Marseille October 7th 2009

From Shell: A day or two ago we celebrated the halfway mark of the holiday - and we've done so much already. Here are some comments/thoughts/reflections on the first half: - Exit rows rock - Make a dinner reservation in Toronto if you arrive the night of a U2 concert - Newark Liberty airport is a living hell-hole - Butter chicken is a good choice the world over - People from the US are absolutely delightful in-situ but not so good to travel with - French people have been really nice - Look lost enough and a woman walking her dog will come to rescue you (Holland and France) - Europeans know how to deliver a public transport system that the public want to use - The Canadian Rockies are up there with Milford Sound (NZ) ... read more

Europe » France » Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur » Marseille September 17th 2009

See text in English below 19 y 20 de febrero de 2009 Las rocas de la Marseilleveyre, San Cyr, el monte Puget y los acantilados de Cap Canaille aparecieron de repente sobre el Mediterraneo cuando el avión viró hacia el norte, y enseguida se abrió a la vista toda la rada de Marsella desde Cap Croisette hasta l´Estaque. Toda la masa de edificios de Marsella se extendían desde el mar hasta los montes que la rodean, y con pereza los empezaban a escalar. -Bonito, ¿verdad? - me dijo una marsellesa que se sentaba al lado mío junto a su marido y a su hija de meses. Muy bonito, la verdad - la contesté yo, mirando por la ventanilla el puerto viejo, protegido por las fortalezas que flanquean su entrada y la basílica de Notre Dame ... read more
Entrada al puerto viejo - Entrance to the old port
La Canebière
Vieux port


Day 26 Marseille was founded in 600 B.C. by the Phoenicians, who established a trading post on the north side of the harbour. It is located on the Gulf of Lions on the south-eastern coast of France. Marseille is the second largest city in France by population (over 1.6 million). It is France's largest commercial port. The ship passed by Château d'If on it's way to the port. The Château was built in 1524-31 on the orders of King François I. From the ship we were able to see Notre-Dame de la Garde on it's hillside location. As we disembarked off Solstice, we walked through an Arch of flowers & people dressed in local costume. As the port where our ship docked was not within walking distance to Vieux Port & Marseille City, we had no ... read more


We arrived into Marseille and decided to spend two nights. The first night we were able to couch surfer with a french couple. They were amazing to us! We arrived pretty late and were welcomed into their home with open arms. The next morning we woke and walked around the river and the old part of the city. It had such a great feel to it. So many people were out walking by the water, sipping coffee at the cafes and viewing the sights. We met up with the couch surfers around noon, along with another couch surfer that had stayed with them a few years back. She was also a Canadian, from Quebec. They all took us out to a beautiful area that many don't get a chance to see. Apparently, a lot of locals ... read more




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