Marseilles! (But theres only one)

 

                                When we woke up we were already in port at Marseilles, France!

Apparently these overnight junkets don't take as long as the itinerary says.

We had a quick petite dejuener in the buffet with many fewer fellow sailers, then got ready to explore this town. Turns out it's the 2nd largest city in France, so we had to take a taxi from the cruise pier to the Vielle-port area. Lots of great views along the way, and then the stunning yacht basin in the middle of the protected harbor appeared.

Marseilles is VERY upscale with lots of high end shops, chi- chi restaurants, and smartly dressed residents everywhere. We found our way to the Visitors' Center and got our bearings before strolling  along the pretty harbor with its billions of dollars worth of yachts, sport and fishing boats, ferries and tall masted sailboats.

We marveled at a church perched high atop the limestone cliffs that surround the city and harbor,

and found a little tourist train that made a circuit up to it, passing mountainside neighborhoods, a beach (65 degree water!), a fort, and some very old homes.

Still a Catholic church in use, Notre Dame de La Garde dates from the late 1800s and has commanding views of the entire city and beyond. We took pictures from every viewpoint and also inside the ornately decorated sanctuary.

How's your Latin?

Then we took the little train back down a different route to the harbor.

We walked back to the more commercial side and picked a restaurant from the hundreds in the district. Again it was lovely and the food superb. Mussels are a specialty in Provencale, which is the oceanside state that the city is part of. We also had delicious Caprese salads, and Sarah ordered a fish dish that turned out to involve a whole roasted fish. She tackled it with knife and fork and enjoyed the flaky white meat. The seafood most likely came from the daily fish market that is held very early every morning right on the harbor pier a few hundred feet away.

After lunch we explored a little more, passing a big war protest near the water, and then a "Bouillabase shop" where the proprietor arranges little bamboo bowls full of the local seafood and fish broth into the local specialty.

A few beers, some croissants,

          (what does all THIS mean?!)

and gelati and a city-sponsored dance for seniors

later we got back in a taxi (same driver, same American pop music switched on for us) back to the port-crosier and our ship. 

30 minutes later (phew!) the boat pulled away and we were on our way to Spain.

Dinner was better again, with ossa bucco, lamb shanks, hummus, babaganoush, and even a rudimentary Bouillabase on the menu. Trae bien!

We watched the sunset from inside, due to very high winds, then made our way to the theater. 

The evening show was an Ed Sheeran tribute, pretty well done with dancers and even an aerialist!      We returned to our rooms just in time to hear the breaking news from NY. Merci!

Tomorrow a longish trip into Tarragona, Spain and back, so it's time to close. No icebergs yet! 

Hasta manana!