Why is Everyone Naked

Our next port is Cap d’ Agde, as we make our way to the border of Spain. We planned to just stay the night but the next day it was poring rain so we stayed a little longer. Nearby is the famous town of Anbone, a naturalist city of over 20,000 people. Fortunately this time of year, the weather is cold enough to make even the most avid nudist from walking around naked. They won’t shed their clothes again until the summer heat returns. The whole area is a community built from scratch. All of the buildings are new, the roads are some of the widest I have seen in Europe, nice sidewalks and landscaped common areas. It is really a wonderful community. The whole town is spotless with no litter and no graffiti. This time of year it is pretty empty. Most of the shops and restaurants are closed and the roadways are almost empty. If you like peace and quiet, this is the place to come during the winter.

Sailing for Sete

We stayed a couple more days in Marseille and then when the weather calmed down a bit headed for Sete. This stretch of the Mediterranean has some of the strongest winds. The French call it the Mistral. When there is a high in the Alps, the only way to equalize the pressure is through the gorge cut by the Rone River. As a result the winds just howl through this part affecting the wind all the way to Toulon. We waited until the winds were as calm as they get and then headed across the water. Even with our cautious waiting, winds gusted to over 35 knots. We made great time sailing at the fastest speeds yet, t one point reaching 10 knots. That is about thirty percent faster than the engines will take us. By the time we reach Sete, the winds had calmed down to about 10 knots. It was a fun and fast day of sailing.

Sete has a huge harbor that runs deep into the town. Beautiful stone buildings with wroth iron balconies line each side of the waterway. The harbor had clear water that you could see deep down. Swimming amongst the rocks were fish about 12” long. They looked like dinner, but I have no skills in catching such things. Fishing is still a major part of the economy here and all the fishing boats were just coming in when we arrived. Along with the fishing boats following their catch were a sky filled with seagulls looking for their evening meal. It looked like something out of the Hitchcock film “The Birds”. We found a nice berth and the capitanerie office could not have been more welcoming. The lady there told us all the restaurants to check out and what nightlife was going on. We wandered around the city for a while, had dinner and skipped the night on the town.

Poking Around the Pope’s Place

The next day we took the train to Avignon. Because of the unrest in Rome, Pope Clement V sought refuge in Avignon. For most of the 14th century, it was here that the popes resided. They build a huge heavily fortified palace. None of the furnishing exists and very few of the walls are preserved with their original decorative frescos. Nonetheless, it is still an imposing structure. 7 official popes governed from these stonewalls. It was during this time that the Catholic Church had two popes serving at one time, one in Rome and one in Avignon. In the end, things got ironed out and the papacy was returned to Rome.

Taking the Train

The seas are a bit rough so we decide to stay in Marseille a little longer, and wait for things to calm down. It is not a bad place to hang out. We take the train to nearby Nimes famous for its textile industry. Their most famous fabric, denim, which got its name from de nimes. This ancient town was an important Roman stronghold. When the Romans included France as part of the Roman Empire, they invested in the town of Nimes. Among the other Roman ruins is the most preserved coliseum in existence. It is not much different than the day it was built. Still in use today for concerts, bullfights and community festivals, spectators still climb the stone stairs and sit on the same stone benches that were in use 2000 years ago. We took the guided tour and learned that Hollywood has greatly distorted what happened in these arenas. Contrary to popular belief, gladiators were not persecuted slaves or prisoners, but were men that choose that profession much like boxers do today. They went to school and learned the art of combat. The contest was to make the opponent submit. The rules were pretty simple; you could do anything but kill the other guy. They had referees that made sure no deadly force was used. When an opponent was conquered, all eyes went to the leading dignitary. He would either tuck his thumb into his fingers indicating that the sword should be sheathed or hold his palm out flat indicating death to the defeated. Rarely was death ruled. A lot of money and time went into training these men. If the dignitary signaled death, he would be responsible to paying the school that trained the gladiator significant sums of money. At mid day most of the spectators left the arena to have lunch. It was during this time that the bloodiest of the spectacle took place. Wild animals such as bears or lions would be put into the arena along with prisoners and enemies of the state chained in place and not allowed to defend themselves. What happened next is a bloodbath with the wild animals feasting on human flesh. Even the Romans considered this pretty barbaric and few watched. It was used as a warning to not cross the might of the Roman Empire. After lunch, the sand on the arena floor was turned, soaking up the blood and the afternoon games would continue.

We also went to the Maison Carree, a temple with typical fluted columns and sculpted frieze. It is the best preserved in the world as well. These two gems made the trip well worth the train ride. They made the Maison Carree into a theater that showed a 3D movie on the history of the area. We got swords poking inches from our face and lances from the Middle Ages hurling towards us. It was all quite fun.

Bouillabasse, Can You Name That Port

If you said Marseille, go to the head of the class. Bouillabasse is the famous Marseille fish soup. Every restaurant has the official recipe. In fact, there is no official recipe that any two cooks can agree on. It is basically any left over fish cooked together. I am sure there will be those that insist certain fish are included, but no one will tell you which ones. Then they take the stock and serve it as soup. The fish is served separately from a platter.

The Vieux Port is a huge rectangle with a fort on each side of the entrance to the harbor. Restaurants and hotels line up on each side of the harbor. This is really a beautiful harbor and we had a berth that had an unbeatable view. Out our back door was the beautiful Notre Dame de la Garde with its gold leafed Madonna and Child watching over the entire city. It is all lit up at night and looks more like an ethereal castle than a church. The inside of the Romanesque building is covered in gold leafed tiles that glimmer down on the congregation below. It is at Marseille that I met up with my friend Jun from San Francisco. He has a nephew, Eugene that lives a couple of miles from the harbor. We all went out to dinner with Eugene’s family. Their little boy PJ charmed us with his big broad smile and gleaming eyes. PJ is only 6 but speaks French, English and Ilocano, a Filipino dialect and loves pizza. The next afternoon, they invited us to their home for a true Filipino dinner. We stuffed ourselves on fresh shrimp, pansit, lumpia, adubo and fried bananas, tron, for dessert. Christy, Eugene’s wife made sure we had a big plate of leftovers to take home with us. We ended up having enough leftovers for three meals. After dinner, we took Bruce to the train station. He is headed for Rome to meet his sister. They are going to spend a couple of weeks touring around Italy together. I of course could not help myself in suggesting enough places to visit that it would take a month to see it all. Bruce and his sister might meet up with me again in Barcelona.

Blown All the Way to Marseille

The winds continued to blow strong so we set our sails for Cassis. One of my favorite towns with its quaint fishing village atmosphere. Space is always tight here, and this time our luck ran out. There was no room for us to spend the night so we continued on to Marseille, which is only a few hours further up the coast. We stayed across from Marseille on the island of Ratonmeau. There are actually two islands right next to each other. The French have connected the islands together and created a resort port. This time of year it is pretty quiet, but a great place to spend the night. It used to be a large prison and then a fort/military instillation. The stonewalls and buildings are still there, but abandoned to time and weather. They are at various stages of decay but very interesting to see the history that once walked along the abandoned corridors. While we walked around the ruins, Bruce found a terracotta tile that had a manufacturers stamp of Marseille imprinted on the backside. There is a lot of rubble outside the walls of the abandoned buildings that had been dumped down a steep embankment. We thought the tile was interesting so decided to dig around and see if we could find some more. They might make fun coasters. Sure enough, with a little digging among the discarded rubble, we found enough whole ones for a set of coasters. But the biggest discovery was when Bruce found a peninsula of the island bearing his family name, LeCheminant. There was even a rock house built on the site. We just didn’t know where to report for clear title to the family estate.

Right across from this island is the famous Ile d’If, which has a beautiful medieval prison, built with high rock walls and rounded turrets. Protestants and other declared heretics were kept there until they served time as galley slaves. In the 19th century Napoleon III kept political prisoners there. But the most famous prisoner there was one that never existed. Alexander Dumas fictional character The Count of Monte Cristo was there for 18 years. The story is actually a fictionalized account of a real prisoner who was kept on an island near Cannes. But of course that little detail does not stop the tour guides showing you an actual cell where the Count could have been quartered.

Pork Rolls

Ok we don’t know how to pronounce Porquerolles so this little picturesque island off the coast of Toulon has become affectionately called Pork Rolls. It is so comfortable coming back to a port that I have been to before. I know where everything is and the spaces available for visiting boats. It is here that Napoleon rested his most honored troops and occupied the fortress at the top of the hill. We rode bikes around the island and up to the fort. It is a massive structure with walls 12’ thick and a commanding view. Many French come over to these islands for a weekend getaway. It was a great place to kick back for a couple of days and enjoy the sun and the sea.

The next morning we head across the waters to Toulon. We had strong winds and good sailing. We plan to spend just the night there. Toulon is a huge city with a large navy presence. In fact it is the largest navy port for the French on the Mediterranean. I like this port because there is a Carrefour store a short distance from the port. Carrefour is a large Wal-Mart type chain in France. There are not many big stores in Europe and it is a treat to go to just one place and find merchandise that I have not seen anywhere else in Europe. The groceries are discounted and with a large selection, it makes a great place to stock up on supplies. We only spend the night in Toulon.