We said goodbye to Montpellier and headed north along the Mediterranean to the huge port of Marseille. We arrived at the bustling train station, the Gare de Marseille St. Charles, a few hours later, into the 2nd largest city in the country (and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region) with a hot sun beating down onto us and the streets full of rushing Marseillais. We were only here for a day and night, staying at a cute apartment in the Endoume area of the city, close to the Vieux-Port and walking distance to the Mer Méditerranée. From the city's main thoroughfare, a wide boulevard called the Canebière, we headed out along the waterfront following the Quai de Rive and a forest of masts where hundreds of yachts and other pleasure craft were moored and on up to the Fort D'Entrecasteaux where we had a fine view of the old port and the main commercial centre of the city. From here we spotted the 800 year-old Basilica Notre-Dame de la Garde overlooking the city, and as we still had some energy left decided to tackle the steep stone pathway leading up to it. We certainly weren't disappointed after an hour of climbing! The view of Marseille was spectacular. From the ramparts of this old Church in all directions the sea and countryside spread out before us, in the distance the Forts of Saint-Nicholas and Saint-Jean and further out in the Bay of Marseille I could see in the haze the Frioul archipelago comprising four islands, one being the island If, the location of Château d'If, made famous by the Dumas novel The Count of Monte Cristo. We could easily have stayed a week or so here but our schedule had us off the next morning to Menton where we would stay four days with Marie's cousins Andre and Michelle. Gws
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| Panoramic view of Marseille |
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| Marie taking a breather on the way to the Basilica |
We must never be afraid to go too far, for truth lies beyond -Marcel Proust
