Monday, February 26, 2024

Marseille, February


Marseille, France

February, 2024


I am surprised that it is now the end of February.  I have been in France now since arriving in Marseille on the first.  My apartment and my landlords are excellent.  I have a small studio apartment in a small village on the outskirts of Marseille called Allauch which is pronounced “Alau”.  Allauch is a little more than a village and I would call it a suburb of Marseille.  However, it maintains the character of a village and, when I climb up the hill, becomes a true Provençal hamlet with a ruined fortress and small church. 


As in most of France there is no shortage of beautiful sites.  Marseille has seen its share of hard times but that seems to be its character.  Marseille is a working town.  Of course in the downtown area there are some fine boutiques but Marseille has little of the panache of Paris.  Marseille is doable, to me, Paris is not.  Marseille has been around for a long time.  The free museum of Marseille proves this as the ancient port, created by the Greeks and Romans, is open to the public.   Marseille is so old that most of the construction is new.  Having been through many wars, and many upheavals, the really old part of town had to be leveled and was replaced with more modern French architecture.  Five story building all with large windows, small balconies and full length shutters adorn the large avenues of the down town.  There are still remnants of the old city but I have yet to find a Medieval looking building.  The Panier district is the closest to it but the Panier district owns its own character in a kind of shabby chic.  The Old Port is the center of everything that is besides the main railroad station St. Charles.  From St. Charles one can find any number of trains, buses and airport shuttles to take one anywhere.  The Metro is simple with just two lines.  There are trams that branch out everywhere the Metro misses and buses ply the rest of the metropolitan area.  A full day pass on all the public transport is 5 Euros.  


Today is Sunday.   It rained today.  I have spent a day at the table on the computer.  Today the thoughts are of home.  It’s such a dichotomy when I travel.  I just love traveling and visiting interesting places yet at the same time I look forward to my home and the projects I have in store for me there. 


Before I left I bought a motorcycle, a motorcycle that I’ve been looking at from awhile.  A friend of mine was retiring and let me know he was selling it.  This bike is a BMW 650 Enduro.  Enduro is what I call it.  Nowadays the enduro is called an “adventure” bike.  It is a much lighter bike than I’ve had in a very long time.  During my last two trips to Latin America I have found the heavy motorcycle to be really difficult in the hilly mountain towns.  In traffic, with a loaded motorcycle stopping and starting can be exhausting.  They are fantastic on the highway but rough anywhere else.  I look forward to riding it down some back roads in Maine and wherever else it leads me.



 

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