Marseille: Now a real entryJun 8, 2011
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| So, Jack and I get into Marseille at 2 pm on Thursday after a *very* rocky ride on Ryanair (if you're ever traveling, seriously, do not take Ryanair. They offer "discounted" travels, which are discounted for a reason. Also, not very discounted once the baggage fee, taxes, and discount convenience fee are added on). Anyways, very tired, Jack and I decide to suck it up and just take a taxi to our hotel. The taxi driver pegs us for tourists almost immediately, despite Jack's awesome French, and 30 minutes/35 Euros later, we arrive at our hotel in the middle of nowhere. Fortunately, the hotel actually turns out to be an incredible find. I'll post pictures later, but it's in this small sleepy town outside of Marseille with local butchers, etc. Jack and I venture to a local produce stand and buy fresh baguettes, tomatoes, avocados, and mozzarella cheese and make the most amazing sandwiches. It's probably 78 degrees and sunny; after several days of rain and gloom in Ireland, this is stunning weather. After lunch, I take a nap and Jack goes exploring. Luck is with us; Jack and I discover that our friend Chris (Boulder-ite) is in Marseille. An overview about Chris: The best possible scenario with Chris’s actions are that *nothing* happens. For example: Chris is in a restaurant in Boulder and gets a large Dr . Pepper. He attempts to balance it on one finger. He fails, and spills it on someone. He sort of apologizes (“I didn’t mean to do that”) and goes on to get a new Dr. Pepper. Which he tries to balance but spills, again. Travels with Chris will be amusing, at the very least, so we give him directions to the hotel. Several hours later, Jack finds him wandering around lost in the little town. I don't remember much after this (I fell asleep at 7...) but we decide to continue the rest of our travels together. The next morning, we wander into town to a boulangerie (pastry shop) and get chocolate croissants and other assorted desserts. We then head to the bus station to buy tickets to Bordeaux, which we've mutually chosen as our next destination. Unfortunately, the train does not leave until 11:30 pm, and it's currently 11:30 am. So, we explore Marseille. Six hours later, we've found street vendors, pastry shops, multiple black market stalls, and a pier. Only six more hours to go... we decide to bar hop for our remaining time and arrive at our platform tipsy and ready for bed. Fortunately, the train is a SLEEPER, which means we each get a triple bunk bed to sleep in. We promptly fall asleep and wake up somewhat rested eight hours later. Our adventures in Bordeaux are the next entry (I have to make a new entry for each town if I want the cool green line on the map to track our travels)... but, teaser: Bordeaux is the New Jersey of France. The stories about Bordeaux and classy wine country are LIES. |
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