Welcome to Marseille (and its beautiful landscape)

My Trip to Marseille from Prague: 2 Hours (or it was supposed to be a 2 hour flight...)

The plan for today, May 22nd, was supposed to be a simple, lazy day. Compared to the wonderful, eventful days before that I spent with my two lovely actors, Karel Hermanek and Nikol Kouklova, it was... I think... I woke up at 8, made sure all my things were together (they were), said my final goodbyes (a lot of the film students were already gone, either back to NYC or traveling throughout Europe), and headed down to catch my taxi at 10:20am. 

You don't realize how comfortable you get when you live in a place for four months. I made my final breakfast (of course, sauteed spinach, fried eggs and salsa, as always) and realized how much stuff I had in that kitchen. I shared half of a drawer for my non-refrigerated goods and had a whole shelf in the fridge. I had 6 kinds of nuts, several spices, several sauces and loads of ingredients which I had planned on using to make certain dishes which I never made (Beef Stroganoff???). It felt odd throwing out ingredients. It felt like I was throwing out a life I had made in a beautiful kitchen in Prague. 

Don't even get me started on my room. Though, that's slightly different. I didn't spend nearly as much time as I did in my room as I did in my kitchen; even though I would have liked to have spent even more... I can never cook enough. I did my school work, for the most part, in the kitchen. I would say study, but we never studied except for two days at the end of the semester for our "finals".

AAA

Triple A... Friend to absolutely EVERY student that studied in Prague this semester. EVERY student. If you can name one student that never step foot in a AAA taxi, I'd give you... 100... Czech Crowns... ($5).

How I'll miss you. One note though, never haul a taxi in Prague. NEVER. I knew from the beginning because I was told so, but a friend of mine decided, "Oh, how convenient. The supposed only safe Taxi company in Prague. Right in front of me. I'm tired, I'll just take this home to lovely Osadni dorm." OOPS. You were expecting to pay 100 crowns? Well, you're paying 300. Sorry!  

I had called in advance for my taxi this morning (as you should) and told them I had a discount voucher for the ride to the airport (something every taxi company should do). If you have this leaflet, you get 47% of your entire ride back to the airport. I mean, that was a $12 taxi ride, all the way out to the airport. I had spent $98 to Newark Airport from Brooklyn (I know, not the best idea...). 

Ruzyně International Airport

I arrived at the airport, with my large hiking backpack and huge rolling (poorly) duffel bag, hoping that my large bag wasn't over 23kg and that they let me past security with my huge backpack. Just my BAD LUCK, my bag weighed a whopping 27kg... 2kg over what they would accept... My bags were so fully stuffed, there was no way I could have just moved stuff around. I had to throw stuff OUT. Threw out my lovely jewelry box (SOO UPSET ABOUT THIS. I loved this jewelry box... At least I didn't throw out the jewelry inside), all of my makeup (which I don't use anyway) and my perfume... And the majority of my hair product. I haven't been happy with what it's been doing to my hair recently... What was I thinking??

Reminder: never get flustered and throw out whatever seems the heaviest because you're ready to leave... 

Brought it down to 23.8kg, perfectly acceptable.

YAY... I'm ready to go to Marseille!! My flight is scheduled for 1:10 and I should arrive at 3:10! It's 11....

Finally we (me and mostly just French speaking lovelies) boarded the wonderful Air France plane and I immediately I noticed a weird sound... It sounded like when you're trying to start a car but it just won't start..... 

Sat down in my lovely empty row (which remained empty, as did the row in front of me), and sat there listening to this sound for 30 minutes, at least. 

......

......

......

Finally, a French voice came over the intercom saying... [French] stuff. The majority of the people gave a grunt and began gathering their things and standing up. Then the same voice began speaking English saying there was a problem and we would have to leave the plane...... 

On the bright side, they gave us a voucher for 200 crowns ($10. Thought I was done using Czech currency) for "refreshments" (that means anything sold at a restaurant). I got a fancy French wine and smoked meats at the wine bar. OOOHHH YEAH. I don't know why, but I always find myself eating something from the country I am going to in preparation in the airport of the country I am coming from. For example, I had beer and sausage in the New York airport in preparation for Germany (connecting airport) and the Czech Republic. I was right. There were a lot of those things in those countries.

Sausages and Beer in Newark Airport back in January

Let's say, I waited a total of 5 hours at the aiport and I was over 2 hours delayed when I arrived in Marseille...

FLASHING LIGHTS, LOUD NOISES!!!!! EXCITEMENT!

 

 Marseille Landscape

First experience when driving through Marseille on the bus was HOLY CRAP, it's beautiful, and also HOLY CRAP, it's hilly!!! That's going to suck for when I get my bike like I planned.

Marseille lies in a sheltered depression surrounded by hills, which have inhibited the development of the suburbs. The Old Port (Vieux Port, more on that later) is a natural harbor and one of the most westerly of the inlets along the rocky coastline characteristic of the northeastern Mediterranean(whatever that means); farther west, beyond a large tidal lake called the Berre Lagoon (Étang de Berre), the shoreline flattens out. 

 Basically, coming from outside (the airport) I drove from higher to lower into Marseille where it flattens out into the sea. 

PS, according to someone from Marseille, Marseille is the oldest city in France! Or something like that... 

I'm not sure what I was expecting, but it definitely feels clustered, all the different levels, scattered and jagged. Up and down and up and down: crowded! 

I don't remember San Francisco when I went as a newborn, but I get the feeling this is more of a miniscule, concentrated and jagged depiction of those hills. But with colorful short European structures... Mind you, beautiful, stunning, breathtaking. I couldn't stop smiling the whole bus ride into town. 

San Francisco... Similar in my mind?

  I've Arrived!!

Now to meet Patrick!... Oh Patrick... He is the friend of the guy who owns the apartment. Met him at Saint Charles terminal. What a lovely middle aged guy. Strong as a horse. He rides a bike in a city where drivers hate cyclist. 

What a true Frenchman. Stripes and everything. Don't mind the lens scratches

He also carried my 23.8kg bag with the straps around his shoulders like a backpack down a flight of stairs. A BEAST. 

More on my neighborhood later. Came up out of the subway and didn't see much of it until later that night and the next day. 

My apartment is SO COOL!!!

I'll post pictures later, when I replace my camera which was stolen (not recently... in my Prague dorm)

It's very "zen" as Patrick put it. The apartment owner designs Japanese inspired children's clothes and spends half of his time in Japan and half in Marseille, so the apartment is very earthy, bohemian and Japanese inspired. And I have my own mini courtyard!

 

Spent the rest of my evening figuring out the apartment with Patrick, attempting to figure out internet (ethernet... can't leave the "computer station" to watch movies...), and going to a ghetto grocery store opened late on the bustling street of La Canabiere in Thiers. (I learned later there's a bodega-like grocery store opened until probably midnight a couple blocks from my apartment. Oh well...)

I can definitely tell it's not a neighborhood to walk alone at night.. Lots of sketchy looking fellows...

BUT: I did walk through Notre Dame du Mont neighborhood (Cours Julien area) to get there and it's absolutely BRIMMING with young artist types and hip edgy shops, bars and restaurants. So excited. Supposedly I live in the hippest neighborhood in Marseille. I can tell, I LOVE IT