This weekend we went to Marseille, one of the biggest cities in France with a population of close to 1 million. We left for Marseille Saturday morning at 8 AM so Friday was spent in Nice.
Thursday night Meg, Jacqueline, and I went out to dinner at our favorite restaurant, Pasta Basta. We overheard the people sitting next to us speaking English so naturally we inquired if they were from the US. As it turned out they were from Los Angeles and were in Nice for a few days on a food and wine tour organized by the Tobin James winery in Pasa Robles, California. We got to talking and by the end of the night they had paid for our dinner so we felt that we at least owed them a tour of Nice.
Friday morning we met up with the couple from the night before, Steve and Carla, as well as the owners of the winery. We took them to Parc du Chateau, a castle in Nice that overlooks the city of Nice, as well as through Vieux Nice. They were all very nice people and we enjoyed being able to show people where we live!
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| View from the chateau |
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| View from the chateau |
Saturday morning I got up before the sun and set out for Aix-en-Provence. After a 3 hour bus ride we arrived in beautiful Aix. There we visited the farmers market and walked through Vieux Aix. After lunch we took a walking tour of Aix which highlighted places where artist Paul Cézanne lived and painted. After the tour we boarded another bus to Marseille.
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| Jacqueline and me in Aix |
We arrived at the train station in Marseille and then walked, for what seemed like an hour, to our hotel to relax and change before dinner. We ate at a small restaurant by the port that had crepes and omelettes. After a delicious meal we headed to the opera to see Andrea Chénier. It was preformed in Italian with French subtitles. I had never been to the opera before so it was a new experience for me. I don't know whether I'm too young to appreciate the art of opera or if I was especially tired that night but my first impression is that maybe the opera isn't for me. Finally it was time to return to the hotel and see what Jacqueline had in store for us the next day.
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| The group at the opera |
Sunday morning after breakfast at the hotel we took yet another walking tour. This time we made our way up to la basilique de Notre Dame de la Garde. While the hike up to the church was fatiguing it was well worth it once we got to the top. The view was amazing. You could see all of Marseille and the surrounding islands off it's coast. The church was also magnificent decorated with gold and blues.
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| View from the church |
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View from the church
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la basilique de Notre Dame de la Garde
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| Inside the church |
After the church we returned to the port for a boat tour of the iles du Frioul. The water was beautiful per usual and true to Marseille's character it was very windy. When we arrived we climbed up to a promenade where the wind must have been 40 miles an hour - or so it felt. We then returned to the train station to return to Nice. Despite the minor wind burn and sore feet we all had a great time!
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| Jessie, Meg, and Jacqueline on the boat |
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| On the windy promenade |
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| Marseille from the train station |
Next stop Florence!
(some of the pictures are kind of small but if you click on them they expand!)
Thursday night Meg, Jacqueline, and I went out to dinner at our favorite restaurant, Pasta Basta. We overheard the people sitting next to us speaking English so naturally we inquired if they were from the US. As it turned out they were from Los Angeles and were in Nice for a few days on a food and wine tour organized by the Tobin James winery in Pasa Robles, California. We got to talking and by the end of the night they had paid for our dinner so we felt that we at least owed them a tour of Nice.
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