So again, dear readers, you have probably been wondering where are those Morrigans now? Well, you can always tell where we are by looking at the Journey page, where it says "Detours: We are here now." This entry covers the time we spent in and around Marseille in mid-May: First, we had another celebration of Rowan's birthday (lucky him!) with new friends in Aix-en-Provence, a lovely little town that is a short train and bus ride away from Marseille. Here is his lovely French birthday cake:;)
Then, just outside Marseille, we stayed at the Etap Hotel in the area called "L'Estaque," which is known for its art and fish (or fish who paint):
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and where Shirl first got to see the Mediterranean, here in a calm port before the storm: ;)
and then in what are starting to be very stormy conditions (see the white caps?)
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It turns out that L'Estaque has been a real artist's center for centuries. Cezanne lived here and painted in a very simple house in L'Estaque much of the time between 1870 and 1882.
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We'd like to do art with these views too!
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On Sunday, we got together with wonderful hosts, Cathy (a friend of our good friend Daniel in Hanoi) and Patrick, who on no notice, took the whole afternoon to take us to a beautiful brunch at the end of the road on what was Mother's Day in the US (wow, sparklers on the profiteroles!) ;)
Here are Cathy and Patrick with Rowan:
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and Cathy with Shirl:
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and the beautiful view (one of many!) at the end of the road by the restaurant:
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Cathy and Patrick showed us the highest place in Marseille, L'Eglise Notre Dame de la Garde, where you can see in the background the scope of the giant city of 850,000 inhabitants that is Marseille, and where there is incredible wind (look at Rowan's hair and hood in the air): ;)
and here at Notre Dame de la Garde are Rowan and Patrick, who are both striving to keep from flying away in the wind:
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And the 2nd-century (!) Abbaye Saint-Victor. Here Patrick peers into the second century:
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and Shirl again captures the old and the new together:
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In stark contrast to the giant city that is Marseille that you can see from Notre Dame de la Garde, here are two pictures of the Vallon des Auffes, a tiny little fishing village right in the middle of the city, below the main street. Seeing it from above:
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and at the Vallon level:
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Shirl is again taken by the graffiti. Sweet place. We love France!
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Thanks so much for showing us things we would never have found, Cathy and Patrick! Our trip is all about the people we meet!