Marseille city and Mediterranean coast

To go on an independent trip to Europe by car and not to visit the French Riviera is a real crime! And although everyone around us warned us that Marseille is now the epicenter of strikes, that the scavengers basically do not go to work, and the city streets are full of stinking garbage bags, we still decided to go there. First of all, because in Marseille we had a very interesting overnight stay on a yacht (what is viski), secondly, because we wanted to swim nearby in some secluded cove on the Mediterranean coast and, thirdly, well, this is the Cote d'Azur after all (la Cote d’Azur)!

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Where to stay in Marseille

Since viski (couchsurfing) is not suitable for everyone, we also do not use it often, especially with a child, and it is better to book hotels in Europe in advance, then I will recommend you Hipark Residence Marseille or Adagio Access Marseille Saint Charles, one is cheaper, the other is more expensive, but both are great hotels. Well, and how we lived on a yacht, read below :)

Arrival in Marseille

We arrived in Marseille in the evening, circled around a bit in search of the desired port and anchorage - and here we are on the yacht. The first test is to get on the boat with all our sleeping bags and things. Ladders for teapots like us are not provided, and the bow of the yacht is quite high. Well, from the third or fourth time we overcame the art of climbing and felt like real seasoned sailors. The yacht itself was small, inside the so-called kitchen with a table that converts into a bed, in the bow there is another bed for two who like to sleep in close conditions, and in the tail of the boat there is a large bed where the hospitable owner himself slept with his children.

Our secluded box at the bow of the yacht

Night Marseille

After having dinner all together and having a conversation on various topics, our glorious four went on an introductory walk through the night of Marseille. The spectacle, I must say, is not for the faint of heart. In addition to the various aromas coming from all sides from the bags with garbage dumped in huge heaps or just on the sidewalk, it was very uncomfortable to meet the excessively noisy Arab youth, who was apparently motivated, and carefully scrutinizing us. It's so strange, as if the young French have long gone to bed, and the Arab - on the contrary, just now woke up and went hunting.

But either we were not so interesting prey for them, or it is generally a misconception about their aggressiveness, and in fact they are simply much more emotional than we, thank God, we did not have a chance to find out from our own experience. The city of Marseille is the second largest city in France, and almost the first in terms of Arab population. They say this is due to the fact that the coast of the Mediterranean Sea and the south of France in terms of climate are the closest and most comfortable for them..

Night coast of the Mediterranean Sea, city of Marseille

Night city of Marseille

The city of Marseille and those same mountains of garbage due to the strike

Garbage mountains in Marseille due to strikes

On a yacht

We slept that night perfectly under the lulling swaying and splashing of the Mediterranean Sea waves against the side of the yacht. And in the morning we had coffee and a delicious French breakfast at the stern. Niko, the owner of the ship, does not rent an apartment, but intends to live on his boat all year round. From his stories, we realized that if you do not have an apartment, a car in the garage and a permanent job that you need to go to every day in addition to the yacht, then owning a boat turns out to be very profitable in terms of money and convenient.

Here we slept peacefully under the measured swaying

It turns out that all those for whom a yacht is just another toy go out to sea on it only 5 times a year, the rest of the time it stays in the port, and monthly they pay rent for a boat space, which in total goes out for a year much. The larger and more expensive the yacht, the higher the payment. If you live on your own ship and occasionally go out to sea on it, it turns out even cheaper than renting an apartment in the same city of Marseille, because you have to pay only for those days when you are in the port. Niko's yacht is not new, she is about 20 years old, these cost from 6 thousand euros.

French breakfast on the yacht

Tea, baguettes, honey, jam

Our honest company

Somewhere here is our yacht

We spent the night in this port

An ordinary morning, ordinary residents of Marseille

Marseille in the afternoon

After having breakfast in a pleasant and interesting company, after having a photo session at the stern of the yacht (where else), we went to explore the sights of Marseille. We were very lucky with the weather, it was sunny and unexpectedly warm after cold Poland and cool Germany. On the advice of Nico, first of all we went up to the observation deck at the Cathedral of Notre-Dame de la Garde and went inside the temple. More spacious there than in our churches, and most importantly, lighter. Candles that you can take from the shelf yourself, dropping 1 euro into a special box, benches, special stands so as not to kneel right on the floor - in general, as in all of Europe, everything is for people. This is where the mentality begins!

Cathedral of Notre Dame de la Garde, city of Marseille

In the Cathedral of Notre Dame de la Garde, city of Marseille

In the Cathedral of Notre Dame de la Garde, city of Marseille

Expressions of gratitude at the Cathedral of Notre Dame de la Garde

Aerial view of Marseille city

Marseille city and Mediterranean coast

Swimming in the cold sea

Well, and the highlight of our program was swimming on the Mediterranean coast! Having driven 50 kilometers from Marseille, we found a secluded cove and parking for the car. Swimming, of course, is also difficult to call our action: undressed, warmed up, ran into the water, spat there and jumped out with a rocket, the water temperature in the Mediterranean at that time was not higher than 16 degrees. french in jackets?!

One elderly couple could not stand it and even came up to us to clarify, maybe we are doing this on an argument. I had to explain that we just really wanted to swim on the Mediterranean coast, and since we are tempered, the cold water is not so terrible for us.

In the same parking lot, another couple became interested in our car: like Renault, like Dacia, but it says Logan. We talked with them, told about ourselves that we are from Russia, that we decided to take a ride to Europe on our own by car. In general, I noticed that the French very easily strike up a conversation with strangers and are sincerely interested in what they are asking about..

Mediterranean coast

Cold Mediterranean Sea.

The place where we swam was very cozy and later we even regretted that we didn’t stay there to spend the night in a tent on the seashore, there was still half a day ahead and the road was calling us further.

Does this cute building remind you of anything? :)

"A little" dirty Marseille.

Marseille city and garbage everywhere

The city of Marseille and those same mountains of garbage due to the strike

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