FRANCE - Europe by Eurail 2015: Touring Europe by Train - page 174

is distinctly Mediterranean, with an international flair. There is much to compare in
the character of Marseilles to the contents of its epicurean delicacy, bouillabaisse,
and the three ingredients so essential in its making.
Greeks, fleeing out of Asia Minor from the Persians, founded Massalia (Mar-
seilles) in 600 B.C. Their enterprising nature disturbed the Ligurians, who came
from Italy, as well as the Iberians coming from Spain, and a lot of head smashing
took place until the Greeks appealed to Rome for help. Romans came by the le-
gions and promptly named the area a Roman province. Hannibal and his elephants
created some disturbance but nothing like that of 360,000 Teutonic warriors in 102
B.C. who were seemingly bent on destroying the civilized world and all that was in
it.
Rome, again to the rescue, dispatched Caius Marius to the province; he, in turn,
disposed of 100,000 Teutons near Aix-en-Provence, just north of Marseilles, thus
saving the day for the province and impacting the future of modern-day France.
Even today, the most popular name for men in this region is Marius.
The French national anthem, “The Marseillaise,” was composed in Strasbourg
by a young French military officer, Rouget de Lisle. The battle song was published
and reached Marseilles just at the time when the city was giving a send-off banquet
to 500 volunteers bound for Paris and the revolution. Someone sang the new song,
and immediately the banquet room picked it up in chorus.
The song was an immediate success, and the volunteers sang it in unison at
every stopping place en route to Paris. By the time they reached Paris they had be-
come somewhat of an accomplished choir, which electrified the Parisians as they
marched through the streets of Paris singing the stirring words at the tops of their
voices.
All the foregoing was given to set the mood for your arrival in Marseilles. Al-
though the city is not famous as a tourist center, it is a very enjoyable place to visit.
Its unusual character and mixture of peoples cannot be found anywhere else in the
world.
Not far from the tourist office, you will find the Vieux-Port and its fish market,
which defies description. This is one of the few places in the world where you can
obtain those three essential ingredients for bouillabaisse: red gurnet, conger eel,
and a Mediterranean fish known locally as rascasse. Nearby restaurants serve it
to perfection.
Here in the Vieux-Port, from a pier known as the quai des Belges (Belgian
Wharf), you can take a ferry for the 15-minute crossing to the island of Chateau
d'If, made famous in The Count of Monte Cristo , by Alexandre Dumas. The castle
is interesting to visit, and your guide will dramatically conclude your tour by show-
ing you the opening through which the count was said to have made his escape.