Marseille=Amazing.

(see the previous post for my pictures from Marseille!)

In my young adulthood, I've certainly had some adventures that fell flat.  Being a suburbanite, I don't always have the best luck with my forays to metropolitan locales.  In Chicago, it almost always seems to be raining, or the museum we planned to visit is closed/expensive, or some other unforeseen factor sours the adventure.  You'd think that I'd learn to plan ahead or come up with a plan B, but I'm still too much of a stubborn romantic!  And besides, sometimes you have a day that justifies a more spontaneous approach.  Our visit to Marseille was definitely one of those lucky days!  We saw so much neat stuff and had so much good luck!

First of all, the weather was gorgeous.  It was hot and dry with a nice breeze.  After getting off the train, there was some consternation as to how exactly we should go about getting to the Vieux Port.  Eventually, some of us just started walking and following signs, which miraculously led us to exactly where we wanted to go.  I was able to ask for maps for everyone at the tourist office and find out which buses to take to the beach.  (Score 1 for Emma's French skillz!)  After we had eaten some lunch, we were at odds as to what to do first.  We started to walk in the direction of La Cathédrale Notre Dame de la Guarde, but it was the hottest part of the day, and just as we were starting to have some second thoughts, we found the ferryboat out to the islands off the coast of Marseille.  Within a few minutes, we bought our tickets, found some bottled water, and hopped aboard.  (Many "I'M ON A BOAT!!!" jokes ensued, of course!).  The coastline was gorgeous, and the view from the water was phenomenal.  

After a short ride, we got to the Château d'If.  This military fortress-turned-prison was really interesting.  It is essentially like a much older French Alcatraz of sorts.  Plus, it is one of the settings of Alexandre Dumas's Comte de Monte Cristo (the Count of Monte Cristo).  Edmund, the main character, was imprisoned for eight years on the island in the story.  Marseille also plays an important role in the plot.  The views from the prison windows are breathtaking, which makes it hard to imagine what it must have been like for the religious and political prisoners who were held there.  We took tons of photos and enjoyed the crazy Mediterranean wind!

Once we had returned ashore, we realized that we could take a bus up to the cathedral.  Within about 15 minutes, we were on a bus!  We managed to get in and out of the cathedral and have a look around within an hour; we even got back to the Vieux Port on the same bus ticket.  After a quick turn around at the Vieux Port, we were on another bus out to the beach.  We were there just long enough to take a quick dip without me getting a sunburn!  (Hoorah!!  Perhaps the greatest success of all.  Emma's skin: 1.  Mediterranean sun: 0).  

We had just enough time for a quick dinner at MacDo.  This was my first French McDonald's experience, and I think French MacDo is better than at home!  In my Happy Meal, I actually got what looked like a Capri Sun pouch of apple sauce that you squeeze into your mouth.  It was so cool!  You can also get chocolate mousse for dessert.  And oh yeah, Daniel ordered a beer!  Too funny.  Gotta love regional McDonald's options!

All in all, we had a lot of good luck and a really good day.  Not to mention the fact that I got to spend time with some totally cool people.  I love Marseille!