Marseille, France

Arrived in Marseille to be greeted by Rachel and Olivier. We stayed in the city at Rachel's apartment for the week. Went walking alot, taking in the views around the Corniche, Notre Dame, and the city.
Amanda also accidentally ordered raw mince with a raw egg for lunch the day after we arrived. They deigned to cook it slighly for her after it became apparant it was not what she expected. It tasted good, even the still raw parts, so I guess they know what they're doing!
Met a couple of Rachel's friends. We went to a creperie with Martine, and Alex cooked us a lovely meal at her home.
At the weekend Olivier drove us to Les Saintes Maries where we saw the running of the bulls. We then had delicious french-style lunch with his family at their holiday home. Lunch is normally an all-afternoon affair, but we had the sped up version of two hours or so. We enjoyed wine, meat, wild mushrooms and pasta, salad and of course cheese to finish off.
After, we drove to Arle where we saw the colloseum and went to the cafe that Van Gogh used to frequent and used as the subject of one of his paintings. We stayed in La Couronne for the rest of the weekend at Olivier's place which is right by the coast.
Back in Marseille the next week we relaxed and visited a few places. We caught the bus to Aix and walked around the old town. We saw the many fountains including a mossy hot-water fed one. Also checked out the astronomical clock tower (1661) and St Sauver Cathedral. On our last night in town we enjoyed a lovely dinner out.
Thanks for looking after us guys.

Paris, France

4/11/05
Arrived in Paris and navigated our way to our hostel via 4 metro lines. Went out for dinner then bought a beer and a small bottle of wine to drink at home. Didn't have a corkscrew but the man in the alcohol store (we had bought our drinks in the supermarket!) opened it for us.
5/11/05
Visited the Arc de Triomphe, Eiffel tower and around. Then in the afternoon found our way to Jim Morrison's grave in Pere Lachaise cemetery. Darren drank a beer to him and got told off by the guard. Saw the Moulin Rouge then went to the Musee de l'Erotisme.
6/11/05
Woke up early as it was the first Sunday of the month which means many of the attractions and museums are free. Raced to the Notre Dame, Louvre, Musee d'Orsay, and the Pantheon. Saw the Mona Lisa, Van Gogh, Monet, Renoir etc.
In the evening we went up Eiffel Tower, the views were amazing, and the tower itself sparkled with lights.
7/11/05
Walked to Les Invalides, went to the Opera National de Paris-Garnier and the Sacre-Coeur de Montmartre Basilique. Then it was time to catch our train to Marseille.
Paris was beautiful. It was easy to get around, not too expensive and the people were very friendly and helpful.

Watch this space

Update coming soon!