In my previous blog post, I unapologetically stated that I do not like French food. Marseille, you have changed my mind. Before I talk about my trip to Marseille, I would like to interject some self reflection. Without a little Jenna rambling, this wouldn’t fit my blogging ‘theme’ now would it?

It goes without saying that the unique opportunity to travel and explore while you’re young teaches you a lot. It has surprisingly already taught me a lot about my own capacities, about what makes me feel happiest in life, and has begun to give me an overall greater sense of confidence and achievement. Aside from this incredible experience of self-insight, I have been learning a lot about the world through the places I am traveling. I think that’s one of the other special things about being young: the desire to not just see but to learn.

I know that many would argue that young people don’t have the desire to learn, which, in some cases, is true. But I think that while you’re young, curiosity is not yet jaded. At least for me it isn’t. And so, with that curiosity I found myself in the southern France port town of Marseille.

To be honest, I had actually never heard of Marseille before, but as it happened, cheap flights and travel eagerness landed some friends and I at this spot on the map. What a cool place it was. As usual, I am going to bullet point some of the funny, notable moments of the trip, so here goes nothin’:

• Travel plans pretty much always go wrong, and this particular weekend proved no different. The gate to our flight closed two minutes prior to our arrival and sure enough, we weren’t able to get on the plane. 90 euro, 4 hours, and a whole lot of frustration later, we were able to get on another flight to Marseille.

 

• If you book an airbnb and don’t have a phone plan to contact the host, things will go wrong. (I’ve already learned this lesson twice, but am still apparently too stubborn to get an international sim card).
• Our airbnb host was hilarious. He didn’t speak any English so the whole introduction was a bunch of charades and miscommunication shenanigans. He also seemed to have a peculiar fascination with Bob Marley, obscure art, and unidentified herbal substances… I guess that’s what you get when you opt for the cheapest place you can find.
• The shower head did not have a holder, so showering consisted of one-handed shampooing while the other hand held up the nozzle. Ladies, shaving your legs is impossible under these circumstances.
• When debating if a boat trip to another port town is worth it, the answer is always yes. You will remember this for the rest of your life.

  

  

• French beaches are rocky. This was the only time in my life I will admit to wishing I had crocs.

• Yes, it’s true. Southern French food is yummy. Paris, step up your game.
• However, snails are as disgusting as they sound.
• The first night we went to an all-too-expensive and all-too-delicious all-you-can-eat buffet- literally and figuratively a mouth full. See pictures below, they do the talking for themselves.

• If you’re purchasing a refrigerated drink at a liquor store DO NOT grab it yourself. You must pay for it first and they will get it out for you. You will also likely get yelled at if you do this (yep, I was this person.)
• We hiked the Calanques Mountains and found ourselves in a secluded beach. It was stunning.

 

A personal favorite anecdote from the trip:

• We went on another excursion to a small port called Les Goudes. The port had no more than 20 buildings, and we happened to make our way into a small cafe because it was the cheapest thing we could find. We got talking to the owner, Caroline, who

  

  had opened up the shop about 2 months ago. We chatted for a long time and it was just one of those grand experiences where you meet someone great out of nowhere. It turns out, she lived in Los Angeles for 7 years. When she moved there, she didn’t know any English, and worked her way through the craziness of LA. She also casually worked for David Guetta, Will Smith and a handful of other celebrities. She gave us her personal facebook, instagram and phone number. She also pointed us in the direction of the Calanques, which we never would have known we could hike had she not befriended us. Making new friends all around the world 🙂