That day happened to be the day where Marseille would host the Rugby World Cup match between South Africa and Fiji so the main train station was embellished with billboards and huge signs indicating the direction to the stadium and not surprisingly, groups of psyched fans equipped with flags, joker hats and of course, their war songs =D
The main train station at Marseille
Since we had less than half a day there, we headed for the Calanques (kah-lonk) (limestone valleys partially submerged by the sea), which Marseille is famous for. In particular, we decided on the Calanque de Callelongue, which was about at hour away from the Marseille train station by metro and then 2 buses (bus 19 then 20).
En route, we feasted our eyes on the many beautiful beaches that were bustling with families as the bus wound its way along the coastline.
What greeted us upon arrival was this:
And then the hike began! (We just had to make use of the french flags we bought at every opportunity ahha)
The hike was pretty tough for me as I'm unfortunately plagued by vertigo each time I look where to place my foot next, cos I'd be looking at the deep drop down below into the vast blue sea.
The path that was challenging but fun!
And then we sat down to have our lunch:
The pristine waters that beckoned.
Time did us no favours and before we knew it, we had to head back to catch the bus 20 which came only in one hour intervals.
An adorable little boy on the bus who was fascinated with Andi's flag! Haha really very very cute!
Upon reaching the city centre, we wanted to try our luck to see if we could get tickets to the rugby match but official ticket sales had closed. We were approached by touts offering us tickets at 20€ but we decided against it. On hind sight, we should've just gotten the tickets I mean, how often do you get to watch a World Cup match? The roar of the fanatic supporters that could be heard even some distance away made us even more envious!
Rugby fever! Notice the pruned figures in the photo on the right? Cool man!
left: Le Stade Velodrome (also the home ground of Olymique Marseille)
right: Even the transport passes mark the directions to the stadium
The view of the town from Marseille St Charles Station
It was a great pity that we didn't have enough time to properly explore this lively city. Hopefully, time and moolah will permit me to make a trip back here again!
Note: For those interested in visiting Marseille, dedicate at least 2 days! It's gonna be well worth the time.
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