A Not So Good City Called Marseille

I don't really know how to describe my disappointment in the city that is Marseille. I was expecting it to be this fantastic city: I mean it is the French Riviera, after all. 

So, we walked to our hostel and then decided to get food, and it was later, probably like 11. Anyway, we see a freakin' fetish hooker getting picked up. As we later found out, this was par for the course that is the dilapidated city that is Marseille. Unfortunately, a lot of our down time was spent in the hostel either playing cards or talking or just lounging around.

We went to a beach our first full day, which was fine. I mean the water was beautiful, but the beach was pebbles instead of sand. The unfortunate thing was just how unsafe the city itself feels. We were walking down the street, and Mona whipped out the map to make sure we were going in the right direction. Lindsey and I both literally looked at each other and told Mona to put away the map before we got killed in the middle of the street in broad daylight. The men across the street looked like they were about to jump us in the street. Anyway, on our second full day, we went to Cassis, a small city on the coast.

Cassis turned out to be everything I think of when I think about Mediterranean cities. It had a bunch of outdoor cafes, tiled roofs, bright blue sea, and a sandy beach. We weren't able to stay long, so we wandered down by the beach and walked in the icy-cold water before searching for lunch. 

We found an outdoor cafe for lunch, and the food was pretty good. I had seafood pizza, and the three of us split a bottle of vine from a local vineyard. It's true; seafood in a coastal city is absolutely amazing. 

Saltwater breeze and seashells in the sand

On Saturday, Mona, Lindsey, and I went to Southend-on-Sea. It's this smaller town on the coast.

It was only an hour train ride to get out of the chaos of London to get to the ocean.

The three of us spent a lot of time just walking along the coast and picking up seashells or mistaking a fish head for a seashell and almost picking it up, luckily this did not happen to me.

It was overcast for most of the day, but it can't be anything but beautiful on the seaside.

And, I finally ate fish and chips. I am actually pretty glad that I waited that long because the fish was fresh and local. The restaurant had the most amazing batter.

Unfortunately we were overcharged for the train due to our own stupidity, but other than that, it was an awesome day.





It was just a fun little town, with some nice shopping areas and cool little seaside houses.

Of white cliffs and literary tales

Last weekend, I went on a day trip to Dover Castle and Canterbury that the school planned for international students.

Dover was awesome. We toured the war tunnels, which are these underground barracks, operating room, strategy rooms, etc. that are in the white cliffs. I had no idea that these tunnels even existed. Then we just walked around - a very hilly area - and went up the tower and got a beautiful view of the coast. As much as I love living in the city, it was nice to go to the coast.

Canterbury was interesting. We were all starving after walking around all day, and one of the guide people with us just wanted to tell us a little about the history before setting us loose. My friend pointed out a girl with a doughnut, and I honestly wanted to steal it.


Anyway, we went to this Cornish pasty place, took a quick survey, and got free lunch. So once I decided that I was no longer so hungry that I was going to steal food from a child, we set out to see the city. I didn't want to go to the cathedral, and instead just wandered around on the streets. A friend and I found a cool used book store, and I got Pickwick Papers for £2. It was a fun little town.


Still on the agenda . . . a post about today's day trip to the ocean, market purchases, and the best cookies. Ever.