Marseilles: The (Last) French Connection

      So, Marseilles is an ancient port city in the south of France that has lots of history and a poor record of economic vitality as of late. I go there in the afternoon, and found my hostel (Hotel Vertigo) right next to the train station. After settling in I went out for a walk through the city to orient myself, planning to check out an African music festival that I had heard about that evening. You see, apparently Marseille was picked as the center of European culture for the summer and therefore has received funds to renovate and build museums as well as put on free concerts. All a good deal for me.
       I got to the park where the festival was at, and I was more interested by the beautiful cathedral at the end of it. It featured a statue of Joan of Arc being burned at the stake. Quite intriguing. Inside it was yet another beautiful church, but devoid of tourists (as is much of Marseilles, unlike Paris and Avignon which is packed everywhere). After enjoying the solitude I took a walk down to the old harbor, winding my way through markets of fish and fruits on the way.
    The harbor is beautiful, and I managed to quickly book a ferry to the islands off the coast which are known for their natural beauty and a couple of abandoned forts from different eras. The main castle, Chateau If, was closed due to high winds, but the larger islands were incredible on their own. As I was exploring the trails along the island, I met a great El Salvadorian from Sweden who accompanied me to the WWII era gun emplacement on the tip of the island (kind of a waste of a fort if you ask me). I was glad to have some company as we explored the eerily quiet ruins of several buildings, bunkers, and gun emplacements that sprawled over a large area.
     After a few hours of exploration, we fought the winds and headed back to the little port town to catch the ferry back to the harbor. There we found a huge free jazz concert going on at the open air stage, so we listened a bit before grabbing a couple of beers and toasting to a successful day. After that we said our goodbyes and headed back to our respective hostels, one friend richer in life.

The church of Joan of Arc

In the church, silence.

Fishing in Marseilles harbor.

Marseilles harbor

Notre Dame de la Garde hovering above the city

On the ferry to the islands

One of the many forts guarding the harbor from ancient times.

Chateau d'If, apparently the castle from The Count of Monte Cristo... not sure if its the one its based off of or the one the movie was shot at...

On the islands!

Looking back across the island at the little port, from the walls of an old castle-like tower.

The little fishing village on the island.

Sighting in on the town from a WWII era pillbox at the fort.

 A room in an old bunker with a hollow floor on one side... It still has some mysteries to it.

A bunker for a really big gun!

The incredible sunset over the island.

The old WWII fort, its old windows looking out like hollow eyes with a sad story to tell.

The free blues concert.... Miss China and Moses (Apparently?)