| Mediterranean majesty  Maritime
Marseilles
Julius Caesar, Louis XIV, Napoleon Bonaparte, the Vatican, the EU the
citizens hereabouts have put manners on all of ‘em with typical
Marseillaise elan.
Originally called Massalia the city was founded by Greek sailors and soon
centuries entered the great mincing machine of Mediterranean history.
Marseilles joined enthusiastically in the French Revolution its volunteers
marching on Paris singing The War Song Of The Rhine Army. So catchy was
the tune that it was renamed La Marseillaise and became the French National
Anthem. Hum this to yourself as you saunter along the Mediterranean coastline:
“Against us tyranny’s bloody standard is raised,Can you
hear in the fields the howling of these fearsome soldiers...”Not
exactly Danny Boy but catchy enough after you’ve had a few.
Despite its long history most of the handsome stone architecture in
today’s Marseilles dates back to the second-half of the 19th century
although the celebrated masterpiece by Le Corbusier the Unité d’Habitation
was only completed in 1952.
Right time, right plaice
Old Marseilles is best seen in the environs of Vieux Port. This is the
hub of the Old City surrounded by streets teeming with seafood restaurants
and shops. On the Quai des Belges the fishing boats disgorge their catch of shellfish
of every description real hardcore prawn so to speak. Bouillabaisse (literally
‘boil right down’) is the region’s celebrated fish stew.
Recipes vary but any self-respecting bouillabaisse should include at least
three kinds of fresh fish cooked in a broth of onions, tomatoes, saffron
and various herbs and spices.
Restaurant le Miramar right there on the Quai du Port (No. 12) is the
place to go for la Vraie Bouillaisse but in reality any of the hundreds
of restaurants, cafés and bars that crowd round the old port will
be able to furnish you with Marseilles’ gift to the world of cuisine.
The perfect accompaniment for bouillabaisse is cassis the local white
wine from the vineyards just to the east of Marseilles. The city’s
other alcoholic creation is pastis an aniseed-flavoured aperitif which
on a hot day is as refreshing as plunging into the Mediterranean.
Legionnaires and literature
The headquarters of the French Foreign Legion is hereabouts. Should that
be your reason for heading to the city you’ll need to know this:
Convicted felons are discouraged from joining the service.
However a legionnaire can enter the service under a pseudonym and after
four years of service can change his name at will.
The current headquarters are in Aubagne just outside Marseilles. Coincidentally
this is the birthplace of Marcel Pagnol the writer of Jean de Florette
a sort of French version of The Field.
Of celebrated craftiness and jaw-dropping cheekiness the Marseillaise
are an attractive bunch of generous and gregarious nature.
No wonder local boy Pagnol is revered here. Occupying a position somewhat
sunnier than the likes of Samuel Beckett here’s what he had to say
about life:
“The reason people find it so hard to be happy is that they always
see the past better than it was, the present worse than it is and the
future less resolved than it will be.”
A true piece of Marseilles philosophy.
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