Vibrant, Vivacious Marseille
November 13, 2023
I think this is the third organized tour I have joined. One in 2006 was a photo tour to Scotland, it rained every day, I believe we had two hours of sunshine over 12 days. The second was a photo tour in Iceland. Traveling with another photographer is always a good thing, you get to bounce ideas off each other, however, this was a group of 8 , all competing for the same ideal spot from which to shoot, not an ideal circumstance, yet I did come away with a nice catalog of photographs. So, OK.
This trip is a cultural tour called “Living in France,” under the auspices of the Smithsonian Institute. The group was small, 14 in all, all enjoyable to be around and our tour leader Charlotta was knowledgeable, friendly, and generous of spirit. A perfect 10? Well, not quite, but that was due to my agenda, not theirs. Creating photographs requires time to consider; angle, lighting, obstacles and such, time that is not typically available on a tour running on a schedule. So while I prefer to build a story to go with my images, this time I didn’t have that luxury, but I was able to get capture vignettes of the sites we visited. This selection is of Marseille, the major port city and an economic driver of France. Starting from the top, the Basilique Notre Dame de la Garde, the highest point in Marseille.
For largest display, click on the individual photograph.
While the views from Post le Garde are spectacular, the vibrant life is at sea level. I started with another cathedral and from there I was treated to a visual feast.
As you can see, Marseille has a lot of color and life, it would certainly be worth a couple of days on its own. That I think is one good thing about the tour, I got to identify places I would visit again for an extended stay.
