It seems every place I go to I am faced with a new experience and something cool! Marseille is of course no exception! I slept in a castle yesterday!
I left around 11am after saying goodbye to my host Cyrille who has been just so welcoming and chill.
The ride over was definitely a test of willpower. Even though it was only 60km it was over 3 mountain ranges and the climbs never seemed to end. Luckily I found a really cheap places along the way for fruits and pastries. Once in Marseille the roads were dotted with potholes and it was a nightmare to navigate the traffic as I arrive just around rush hour. Crossing multiple round abouts that traversed multi-line highways was definitely not fun.
In any case I made it safe and sound at my couchsurfer's place. Loic is a mechanic for helicopters in one of the companies around Marseille and he has been here for 6 years. He told me we were going to a girls party tonight prior but I had no idea where or who she was.
So off we went on his motorbike which is 1000cc and he drives like a maniac! We were swerving in an out of traffic sometimes even passing between 2 cars at the same time. To make matters worse I had a mat in my bag and he kept checking his rear view mirror to see if it had fallen out. But to me it appeared as if something was wrong with the bike when we are going 160km/h. Definitely had my heart in my throat.
We arrived safe and sound; to my surprise the party was in a castle! It was huge with 3 stories and a full courtyard both front and back.
We joined the other guests and I met the host Christopher who lives in the castle. Joanna is the girl who has a birthday and she is a signer for a couple of bands. So she invited all her bandmates and in the evening we saw them perform and relaxed in the castle.
Christopher tells me he works for the international school right by the castle. The castle is actually owned by the school. So when they employed him they gave him a residence in the castle! He has the whole second floor all to himself but it looks like the 3rd floor was also empty when we were there so that's where we slept.
Anyways around 1am I was so tired so I turned in for the night. But definitely a story to tell the kids when I am older.
My room
views into side courtyard from my room
Round bathroom
Front courtyard
Back courtyard
Gig equipment
The guests singing and jamming together
The castle we stayed in. Totally private and free for us! It's called Chateau d'arc
Castle lobby. There is definitely a lack of maintence with random stuff thrown around haphazardly except some rooms which were nicely furnished
Coming into Marseilles requires traversing these multilaned round abouts
Small awesome fruit stand on the way to Marseilles with the chepest prices I have seen in the South. Melons for 50 cents!!!!
Loads of mountains
My feet were burning up from the force of the climbs. Quick internet search told me it was the nerves getting compacted from the pressure. It was so bad I had to take a break. Simply walking hurt. I found the solution in later times to just climb with the middle of my feet instead of using the toes like normally.
In my second day at La Seyne-Sur-Mer I toured around by myself in the daytime and at night I went on a motorbike ride with Cyrille in mount Farron.
Cyrille had work in the morning at 8am but he left me the keys to the house. He also cooked me breakfast - how amazing is that!
After breakfast I took his advice and went to six-four a peninsula just to the south of his place. The ride over was beautiful to say the least and the peninsula was even more pretty. As I walked around the landscape I found little beaches dotted along the and hidden by the rising rock formations. So I chose one for myself and simply relaxed there enjoying the sun! It was heaven!
In the evening I joined Cyrille and he took me on my first motorbike ride. He has a Yamaha 900cc bike and we went up mount Farron. It wasn't actually that scary because he drove quite calmly and slowly initiated me into the speed. There were definitely some scary moments like when he pushed the throttle into 200km/h on the highway, or when we were going around hairpin turns on the mountain with no railing to stop us from turning off the cliff.
But in any case we arrived safe and sound and I saw an amazing view of Toulon.
Cyrille is just one of the coolest and most calm people I have met. Before I left I told him anytime he wants to come to Canada he has a place to stay!
Slept on this comfy IKEA pull out bed
My secret little beach look at that view and water! Best of all I was the only one there!
Me and Cyrile
We went to a bar and they had a graffiti paiting session going on, I saw this being worked on. The lights spilling out of the windows are a really cool effect
I left Kathy's place not as bright and early as I hoped.
My château was just too comfortable! So I woke up around 9am and after eating and packing it was already 11am by the time I hit the road.
My next couchsurfer Cyrille was working for i took the extra time to check out Toulon. I went by the port and walked around old town. But first I found a secret little beach and relaxed there with my book. This new book I'm reading is called: China Dolls, not really educational but once in a while you have to relax right haha.
Around 5pm I finally arrived at Cyrile's place. He is also living off the main road in a farm area. Cyrile is actually from Paris but now working for the red cross here. Like always I asked for a shower first before joining him for dinner. He cooked us a nice plate of French chicken and we shared travel stories in Asian. He has really traveled a lot have been to almost every continent.
He is also a really great cook. Before dinner we had a little picnic by the little river next to his house.
We finished the day by playing some video games in his Xbox and he had a wide selection so we jumped back and forth.
The French in the south really knows how to live! C'est la vie is the phrase of the day.
Kathy and I played some squash together in the afternoon and she crushed me winning all 3 games. In the afternoon she had work so I relaxed by her pool switching between reading and jumping into the pool. C'est la vie.
In the evening Alan Kathy and I joined their friends in a game of volleyball. We were quite evenly matched with each team finishing 2-2 in the end. After the match we took a picnic alongside the sea and watched as the sun set over the distance. C'est la vie.
It was amazing surfing with Kathy and Alan and I invited them to come to Canada whenever they want. Hopefully that will be sooner rather than later.
I took of yesterday in the morning bright and early at 8am. The journey to La Garde was the hardest route I have done yet, but the reward was amazing!
The road over I opted to goes through the mountain ranges in the interior instead of along the coast. This way I saved about 20km of riding which doesn't sound like much, but when you are on your bike for 5 hours the reprieve is much welcomed. However the 63km felt more like 83.
There were many factors that contributed to the exhaustion. First the weather was cloudy most of the time. That meant I didn't get that sun elevating my energy. Second the view in the interior although grand was nothing coming to the turquoise Cote d'Azur sea. Third, I changed my music and this might have been one change to many. The three combined together to make a cocktail of lethargy as I biked towards my destination.
But no matter, once I passed by Londe I was seeing the sun, the sea and getting used to my new music!
I arrived at my couchsurfer Kathy and Alan's place around 4pm. Their house is secretly tucked away from the main road and right next to some farms. It was simply amazing! They constructed it themselves 12 years ago. There is a pool, a outdoor shower, a open air lounge built on a 2 story high wooden platform and they raise their own chickens who roam in the backyard!
I am in love with their place! The best part, I have my own little chalet all to myself in a separate building! Kathy tells me usually they actually rent out my place to French people who vacation in the south. This explains the nicely furnished apartment.
Kathy was such a welcoming host. She cooked me dinner and we got to know each other better. She actually works from home doing shipping logistics. It's a very busy job from the looks of it as she was receiving calls throughout my time there. But the great thing is she works on her own time. She employs another person who works from their home as well.
In the evening Alan, Kathy and I took their boat out for a spin. It was simply amazing. The tiny little boat can go really fast and bumping into a wave sent us lunging into the sky and back down to the sea. Better than an amusement park ride! We also took a little picnic there on the water.
When we came back there was a game of pedonque going on the port with some of Kathy friends so we joined in and played 2 games. Kathy and I won one game and lost one game, not bad for my second time playing!
Going through the mountains
Suddenly a wild camel appears. I guess it was part of a travelling circus, but it was just free to mill around the grass on its own with no barriers. I tried to touch it but got too scared :( they are actually huge in person
Kathy and Alan's pool and backyard
awesome treetop lounge
Alan
Enjoying the breeze
My room which actually is a guest house completely detached from the main house and I have since started to refer to as le chateau which means the castle
Looks like an abandonned amusement park but actually as I learned later it is only open in the night.
