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MARSEILLE (France)
Spelling. Marseille in French, Marseilles in
English, but no change in the pronunciation
(mar-say'). |
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Marseilles is a Provencal city with
vitality, centered around 26-century-old
port, with a dynamic downtown, big parks, a
medieval-village-style neighborhood,
downtown shopping and wonderful seafood. If
you have an "image" of Marseilles that isn't
good, a visit here will be a wonderful
surprise. The photo is of the L'Escolo de la
Mar; this Marseillais folk-dance group was
founded in 1854 by Frédéric Mistral and his
friends, making it the oldest in France. |
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Marseilles is, first of all, ancient. Started by
the Phoenician around 600-BC (ignoring of course the Ligurians who already lived here), taken over by the
Greeks in 540 BC, and conquered by the Romans two
thousand years ago, it is full of sites and
artifacts of Antiquity. Marseilles is the
second-largest city in France, with its metro and
its Parisian-style division into "arrondissements".
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The
flavor of Marseilles is antiquity, seaport, seafood,
museums, history and travel. On the darker side, the
reputation of Marseilles included gangsters and
plague, with the gangster reputation from the "old
days" accented by many French films and the American
film "The French Connection". The plague gained its
entry into Provence in 1720 from a ship of silk and
cotton unloaded at Marseilles.
Gastronomy
Marseilles must be the seafood capital of
Provence, at least. The most famous seafood
dish of Marseilles is bouillabaisse,
world renowned and worth the reputation. The
two main varieties offered in local
restaurants are Bouillabaisse du Ravi and
Bouillabaisse du Pêcheur. "Ravi", the most
complete and including six different types
of fish, is definitely a full meal.
Bouillabaisse du Pêcher is smaller and
lighter, with three types of fish. This is
the recommended one for lunch, and even so,
you'll need a good appetite to have
something else with it. |
The Marseillaise
The National hymn of France was born in
Strasbourg and raised in Marseilles. In
1792, during the Revolution,
Rouget de Lisle, a young officer from the
Army Engineers, composed the war-song of the
Army of the Rhine (Chant de guerre de
l'Armée du Rhin).
In Marseilles, during a banquet to honour
500 volunteers being sent to Paris, someone
sang the song, which had been published, and
everyone joined in. Copies of the song were
given to all of the volunteers, who sang it
at every stop on their way to Paris, rousing
support as they went. When they marched
through the streets of Paris singing the
song, 500-strong and now very good, with
their Provençal accents, the crowds loved
it. It became instantly popular, and was
named La Marseillaise. |
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CHEZ PHILIPPE invites
you to discover or re-discover his Carte. It is like a visit to
Provence. |
Tax and Gratuities not included, Split
charges applies and 18% gratuities
added to Party over 5 guests.
No Split Check / No substitution
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