Day 52 - Marseille - Mucem - Fort St Jean - Dinner with Friends
Wednesday, August 22, 2018. Marseille
Today I actually got up early and started to make noise to wake up the family. I get anxious when I don’t know if we have a place to stay at our next destination. When Gregory got up, I asked him and of course, the Airbnb hosts had canceled the request. I got even more anxious so I decided to get busy. I made breakfast which nobody wanted to eat (eggs), since it was too early and we were still full from yesterday's dinner. Gregory and I wanted to go to Arles but the kids preferred to stay home so we decided to finish seeing the rest of Marseille. We really hadn’t covered much last time.
We got ready to go and Gregory requested another place to stay in Nice and now it was a matter of waiting. We walked down to the old port. I guess nothing is far when you have the time. We saw a lot of little stores, cafes, bars, boulangeries, and more. We stopped at a very old store that Virginie and Philippe had recommended. It was a home goods store that looked like it had been last updated in the 1970s. Gregory was very happy looking at the knives. I tried to find a present for the Amabile family. I knew that Virginie probably had everything and I wasn’t sure what they needed so I asked if they had gift cards, and they did! Problem solved.
After that, we were all tired, I know I say this a lot but that’s how we all felt, so we agreed that it was time for a drink in a very French looking cafe called Le Petit Saint Louis. We actually spent an hour for a change, mostly because there was free wifi and Gregory was waiting to hear from the Airbnb host. I was more anxious than the morning and finally, the answer came, we got the place! I don’t know why I worry if we always find a place to stay, except Bordeaux.
We left and then we were ready to go see the Mucem and the Fort St. Jean but of course, Sunshine had to go to the bathroom, Daniel was hungry -- OK, I was hungry. We found a shopping mall restroom and when we came out, we saw the Greek ruins which are outside the mall. Then we found at Monoprix with a salad bar and a microwave to warm up your food. This is a very nice choice if you are trying to save money because you have fresh salad or chicken curry to warm up.
Finally, we were ready to walk towards the Fort Saint Jean at the end of the port. It was very pleasant because the weather was actually cloudy and cool. We got a nice break from the heat. We saw all the little stands on the side selling souvenirs like jewelry, soap and tablecloths from Provence.
We walked up to an old church called St. Laurent, supposedly one of the oldest buildings in Marseille. We crossed a modern iron pedestrian bridge to Fort Saint Jean.
The Fort Saint Jean which was a fortification built in 1660 by Louis XIV at the entrance to the old Port. Since 2013, it is linked by two thin bridges to the historical district of Le Panier and to the Mucem, which stands for Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilisations. They had different exhibitions, one a photography expo on eating, I would have loved to see that one but everyone was ready to leave. We sat and admired the view from the modern building, which is like an indoor/outdoor building with a gentle ramp down instead of stairs.
We made our way out and took two buses back to our last stop, Super U, the grocery store near our home. I’m using a lot of sign language here in France, not even Gregory knew how to say mop in French so I just had to act it out. In case you are wondering, it's serpillere. We got our food for our lunch tomorrow on the bus. We also bought mosquito repellent. Did I mentioned how many there are and how are they devouring us? C’est terrible!
When we were at the bus stop on our way home with groceries, I remembered that we didn’t have coffee! It is a tragedy in our family if we don’t have our morning coffee. Gregory went back to the grocery store and we took the bus back home. Luckily, Virginie was home and opened the door for us. There was only one gate for both houses which share the same garage. Virginie said that was common in France.
Gregory arrived a few minutes later and we went home to finish packing. We came back downstairs around 7:30 for dinner. I just loved the simple and delicious appetizers she had for dinner. I told Virginie that I was getting ideas of what to cook so when I go back home, I’m not going to worry if I don’t have a formal dinner, but just different tapas. It was great. They also invited their neighbors Anne and Laurent who spoke very little English so most of the conversation was in French. It was OK because I just love to hear them talking, I wished I could express myself better like Gregory, who had no problem expressing himself. When I watched him talking about a book, a movie or whatever, I can see how European he is and why he likes France so much. People here like to analyze and talk about anything, we came to that conclusion.
Max, Virginie’s cousin and boyfriend Austin showed up later and I was happy to speak Spanish and English to Austin. It felt like a break. They are both very nice and they live in Portland, Oregon so we had plenty of conversation but it was late and they were going to Avignon next morning, and we to Nice. We said our goodbyes and went to bed.
Culinary tip: Try the famous "navettes" from the oldest boulangerie in Marseille, le Four des Navettes. We liked the anis and orange flavors.
Today I actually got up early and started to make noise to wake up the family. I get anxious when I don’t know if we have a place to stay at our next destination. When Gregory got up, I asked him and of course, the Airbnb hosts had canceled the request. I got even more anxious so I decided to get busy. I made breakfast which nobody wanted to eat (eggs), since it was too early and we were still full from yesterday's dinner. Gregory and I wanted to go to Arles but the kids preferred to stay home so we decided to finish seeing the rest of Marseille. We really hadn’t covered much last time.
We got ready to go and Gregory requested another place to stay in Nice and now it was a matter of waiting. We walked down to the old port. I guess nothing is far when you have the time. We saw a lot of little stores, cafes, bars, boulangeries, and more. We stopped at a very old store that Virginie and Philippe had recommended. It was a home goods store that looked like it had been last updated in the 1970s. Gregory was very happy looking at the knives. I tried to find a present for the Amabile family. I knew that Virginie probably had everything and I wasn’t sure what they needed so I asked if they had gift cards, and they did! Problem solved.
After that, we were all tired, I know I say this a lot but that’s how we all felt, so we agreed that it was time for a drink in a very French looking cafe called Le Petit Saint Louis. We actually spent an hour for a change, mostly because there was free wifi and Gregory was waiting to hear from the Airbnb host. I was more anxious than the morning and finally, the answer came, we got the place! I don’t know why I worry if we always find a place to stay, except Bordeaux.
We left and then we were ready to go see the Mucem and the Fort St. Jean but of course, Sunshine had to go to the bathroom, Daniel was hungry -- OK, I was hungry. We found a shopping mall restroom and when we came out, we saw the Greek ruins which are outside the mall. Then we found at Monoprix with a salad bar and a microwave to warm up your food. This is a very nice choice if you are trying to save money because you have fresh salad or chicken curry to warm up.
Finally, we were ready to walk towards the Fort Saint Jean at the end of the port. It was very pleasant because the weather was actually cloudy and cool. We got a nice break from the heat. We saw all the little stands on the side selling souvenirs like jewelry, soap and tablecloths from Provence.
We walked up to an old church called St. Laurent, supposedly one of the oldest buildings in Marseille. We crossed a modern iron pedestrian bridge to Fort Saint Jean.
The Fort Saint Jean which was a fortification built in 1660 by Louis XIV at the entrance to the old Port. Since 2013, it is linked by two thin bridges to the historical district of Le Panier and to the Mucem, which stands for Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilisations. They had different exhibitions, one a photography expo on eating, I would have loved to see that one but everyone was ready to leave. We sat and admired the view from the modern building, which is like an indoor/outdoor building with a gentle ramp down instead of stairs.
We made our way out and took two buses back to our last stop, Super U, the grocery store near our home. I’m using a lot of sign language here in France, not even Gregory knew how to say mop in French so I just had to act it out. In case you are wondering, it's serpillere. We got our food for our lunch tomorrow on the bus. We also bought mosquito repellent. Did I mentioned how many there are and how are they devouring us? C’est terrible!
When we were at the bus stop on our way home with groceries, I remembered that we didn’t have coffee! It is a tragedy in our family if we don’t have our morning coffee. Gregory went back to the grocery store and we took the bus back home. Luckily, Virginie was home and opened the door for us. There was only one gate for both houses which share the same garage. Virginie said that was common in France.
Gregory arrived a few minutes later and we went home to finish packing. We came back downstairs around 7:30 for dinner. I just loved the simple and delicious appetizers she had for dinner. I told Virginie that I was getting ideas of what to cook so when I go back home, I’m not going to worry if I don’t have a formal dinner, but just different tapas. It was great. They also invited their neighbors Anne and Laurent who spoke very little English so most of the conversation was in French. It was OK because I just love to hear them talking, I wished I could express myself better like Gregory, who had no problem expressing himself. When I watched him talking about a book, a movie or whatever, I can see how European he is and why he likes France so much. People here like to analyze and talk about anything, we came to that conclusion.
Max, Virginie’s cousin and boyfriend Austin showed up later and I was happy to speak Spanish and English to Austin. It felt like a break. They are both very nice and they live in Portland, Oregon so we had plenty of conversation but it was late and they were going to Avignon next morning, and we to Nice. We said our goodbyes and went to bed.
Culinary tip: Try the famous "navettes" from the oldest boulangerie in Marseille, le Four des Navettes. We liked the anis and orange flavors.
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| Marseille was founded by the Greeks |
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| Greek ruins |
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| At the Port |
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| Going to the Fort Saint Jean |
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| Eglise St. Laurent |
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| Eglise St. Laurent, architectural style: Romanesque |
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| We crossed a bridge to get to the Fort Saint Jean |
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| At the Muceum |
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| Preparing dinner |
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| Wine, cheese and good conversations! |
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