Monday 19^th May 2014

As we had sailed northwest over night we woke this morning to a much cooler temperature of 15° with light rain.

Not such an early start today so we had time to go to the Horizon Café for a full breakfast from the buffet.

We boarded the bus at 9:00am for a city drive around Marseilles and then on to the Notre-Dame de le Garde, an enormous Neo-Byzantine Basilica that sits on a high hill overlooking the city. The terrace of the Basilica provided 360° views of the city, the sea, and surrounding countryside.

View from the terrace

 The Basilica has a statue of the Virgin Mary on top of the bell tower, which is made of copper and has been gold plated. Inside, the Basilica is beautiful with high domed ceilings and stained glass windows. There were 167 steps up to the Basilica and, yes, the same 167 steps back down. 

Notre-Damede le Garde

Back on the bus to rest our legs during the drive down to the old port (Vieux Port), where we were able to get out and walk around. We saw the fish markets including some fishermen selling their catch, some of which were live in tubs of water.

The old harbour dates back to 600BC and was almost destroyed during WWII. Marseille bay is enclosed and protected by 3 small islands; the smallest and best known is Chateau d’If. In 1634 the Chateau d’If became a state prison and had many famous prisoners - the most famous being Edmond Dantès, the fictional hero of Alexandre Dumas’ book “The Count of Monte Cristo”.

  Back on the bus for the drive back to the ship and on the way we drove past the 19^th century Longchamps Palace, which was built to celebrate the opening of the Marseille Canal.

Arrived back on board about 2:00pm and had lunch at the café.

Fish market