Text: Peter Johansson
Editing: Christer Lundstedt
Photos: Christer Lundstedt, Peter Johansson
Videos: Christer Lundstedt
Monday 2nd of January
08.30 In a week I will be back home in Sweden and back at my teaching job at Anundsjöskolan. Right now, however, I'm still in France and staying at the Hôtel Ibis Budget in Nîmes. Before we switched off and went to sleep yesterday, we bought tickets for the train trip from Avignon to Marseille. There will be no stopover in Aix-en-Provence as we originally thought. It will just be a lot of stress if we do that.
09.33 Christer has contacted the hotel in Montpellier due to the fact that two upcoming payments have been entered into his bank account. It was said yesterday that one would have been deleted, but that has not happened. They have responded with a scanned receipt stating that it was paid correctly. You just have to trust what they say and wait.
10.05 According to the hotel in Montpellier, Christer should contact his bank if the money does not appear. We are now sitting at stop 13 at the bus station outside the hotel and waiting for the bus that will take us on to Arles. An alcoholic with his pants half way down his bum has been wandering around trying to make conversation with a young girl. Now he has walked away.
10.31 Bus 130 rolled nicely into stop 11. The luggage was loaded under the bus. It was not possible to buy tickets with a card when we boarded. I showed a euro note but the driver instead talked about SMS payment. An English-speaking lady among the passengers informed us that it was indeed possible to pay with banknotes. Now two tickets have been purchased with a note and we are on our way as planned.
11.02 There is not much activity on or next to our route. It's an overcast gray Monday.
11.29 It wasn't a long bus journey, just about an hour. Pretty soon we arrived in Arles. Now we are taking a bench break in a small park and planning what we will do here in town and in what order. Arles in Provence with 52,439 inhabitants is known as the town where the artist Vincent Van Gogh lived from 1888 and painted many of his paintings. There are also many remains from Roman times here.
14.02 We have continued to search and constantly come to restaurants with no free tables or completely closed restaurants. It's really bad today. At least now we have found a place that I still don't know the name of. They offer food in plastic cans as well as coffee. We have just ordered coffee. We'll have to settle for that before we travel on.
16.00 Now it's enough to spend time in rooms. We have to go out to see Avignon. Getting to eat something wouldn't be entirely wrong either.
16.21 Behind me it is now really majestic. We are currently standing in front of the city's papal palace. It looks like something out of a movie set or something built out of Lego. In the 14th century, several of the Popes of the Catholic Church resided here. The Avignon Papacy came about after the French King Philip IV took control of the Roman Catholic Church. He moved the papacy from Rome to Avignon and himself appointed French cardinals as popes. The papacy was weak during this time and dependent on various worldly rulers. Through skilful negotiations, the French king had succeeded in persuading the Pope to move to Avignon. Although the Avignon papacy is considered to have come to an end in 1377, there were still people in Avignon who claimed to be the rightful pope. This meant that between 1378 and 1417 there were two (for some years even three) popes who both excommunicated the other, also called the great schism. In 1417, the last remnants of the papacy were dismantled in Avignon (Source: Wikipedia)
16.52 Now we are having a bench break. We just saw Pont Saint Bezent/Pont D'Avignon. It is a bridge from the 12th century that reaches and extends a bit over the river Rhône. The bridge was regularly destroyed and eventually they gave up and let it go only a short distance into the river.
19.01 The hunger is temporarily taken care of. Now we have to plan the rest of the evening.
Tuesday 3rd of January
We are waiting for the bus that will take us to Arles.
A bench break begins our hours in Arles.
The Rhône river and some dogs going for a walk.
Time to explore another French city.
Arènes d'Arles, Roman amphitheater built in 90.
Someone is going to clean.
Frédéric Mistral at Place du Forum.
Beautiful gate at Cathédrale Saint-Trophime.
Obélisque d'Arles on the Place de la République in Arles.
Soon the train that will take us from Arles will arrive.
We have arrived in Avignon.
Cours Jean Jaurès, Avignon.
La Ronde de Perdiguier, Avignon.
A telephone kiosk has become a book kiosk.
The road to Hôtel Central Avignon.
Opéra Grand Avignon.
The Pope's Palace (Palais des Papes) in Avignon.
Christer in front of the papal residence in Avignon.
The cathedral Notre Dame des Doms d'Avignon.
The 12th-century bridge Pont d'Avignon (Pont Saint Benezet).
Beautiful lights on Place de l’Horloge.
We met a bear on our city walk.
Cozy in the Christmas tree ball.
Avignon is beautiful in the evening.
Place des Corps-Saints, Avignon.
Restaurant Pizzeria Les Arts.
Christer is waiting for his pizza.
Two polar bears and a tourist.
09.39 This morning was a sleep-in morning for us. It needed to be said, written. According to the original plan, we would have gotten up early today and taken a bus to Aix-en-Provence, but we changed these plans during the trip. Now it will instead be a quiet morning before it is time to travel from Avignon. This has probably been the best hotel of the trip so far.
10.41 Our plans to walk slowly to the train station, see a bit more of the city and maybe take a short stop, have come to a stop, even crash-landed. It is raining heavily. 11.01 Slightly moistened, we have made it to the Avignon Centre railway station. Of course it´s bad with the rain, but how lucky we were to escape it during our city walks yesterday. 11.40 The track information appeared on a screen and we went to voie D, i.e. track D. Now we are going to the city where Edmund Dantès lived in a single room for fourteen years. 12.13 It is a calm and pleasant trip so far. Nothing to write about happens. We glide through a gray and gloomy southern French landscape. 12.34 A lady with a purple bicycle and a gentleman with a black rolling bag pass the train which is stationary at the station in Miramas. In less than an hour we will arrive at today's final destination, Marseille.
Gare d'Avignon Centre.
Christer is waiting for the train in Avignon.
On the train to Marseille.
The final destination is shown.
Marseille Saint-Charles railway station.
A purple moose welcomed us to Marseille.
13.11 Again we are approaching one of these cities we have only heard of but never visited. We have passed the Aéroport Marseille Provence airport. Convenient that you can take the train there. It is good to know if we will ever fly to these areas.
13.42 We have arrived. Marseille Saint-Charles is the name of the large railway station we just walked through. Starbucks Coffee is the name of the chain where we currently drink Tall Americano and double espresso. For this, we have ordered carrot cake and pancakes with caramel sauce. 14.26 From the station area here at Saint-Charles, we look down at a steep staircase, the Escalier Gare Saint-Charles, and a long street that winds its way down through Marseille. We are now in France's second largest city. It was founded with the name Massalia by Greek colonizers as early as the 6th century BC and is thus one of Europe's oldest cities. Today, there are 861,635 inhabitants living in Marseille. The aforementioned Edmund Dantès is the main character in Alexandre Dumas' adventure novel The Count of Monte Cristo from 1844. It takes place right here in Marseille. 14.50 Hôtel Terminus Saint-Charles (https://www.hotelterminusmarseille.fr) and room 106 is our new home. This is where we will be staying during our stay here in Marseille. Now we will plan how we will act to get as much as possible out of the remaining hours of daylight today. 15.32 The starting position is approaching. It's time to leave the room to see another one of France's many cities. 15.51 From the hotel, we have walked down to the street La Canebière, which is one of the city's most famous streets and has been here since the 17th century. It leads to the harbor and in that direction we now continue. 16.20 We have walked around, looked and photographed down in the old port, Vieux Port. When we found a bench, I took the opportunity to note even more.
Christer visits Starbucks at Marseille Saint-Charles.
Christer is ready to step out in Marseille.
Hotel Terminus Saint-Charles.
Peter in room 106.
Cours Belsunce, Marseille.
Brasserie La Samaritaine, Marseille.
16.51 We found a bench in front of all the boats at the Place aux Huiles ferry station and were able to rest for a while. Now we are at Place General de Gaulle. Here there is, among other things, a nice carousel that you can ride if you pay 3 euros. We are not going to go. We also do not intend to walk the distance to look out towards the island and the fortress of If. It was there that people were imprisoned between 1634 and 1890. Edmund Dantès, the hero of Alexandre Dumas' book The Count of Monte Cristo spent fourteen years at If. What we really want to do is eat something. How do we solve it?
17.51 There was no visit to any restaurant. It was instead a visit to the Carrefour City supermarket. Now we have both snacks and breakfast for tomorrow. The big questions are what we are going to eat for dinner and how we are not going to be as hungry tomorrow. Another thing I'm wondering is how does the coffee capsule machine we have in our room work? 18.34 It's almost time to get us something to eat. This is the second day in a row that we have found ourselves in a situation of involuntary hunger. This is partly because we cannot find any suitable places to eat, but also because the hotels have check-in times which mean that it is too late for lunch when we leave the room. 19.54 The snacks have filled us up for a while, but now we soon have to go out to eat a more serious dinner. Tomorrow we mustn't be careless with the food like this.
Christmas tree and police officers on horses in front of Église Saint-Ferréol les Augustins.
Basilique Notre-Dame de la Garde can be seen at the highest point of Marseille.
Vieux Port, Marseille.
Plenty of boats in the port of Marseille.
Grand Carrousel de la Canebière Marseille.
Boutique OM Officielle sells products of the football team Olympique de Marseille.
20.14 Marseille is a truly multicultural city. An advantage of this is that there is a wide range of restaurants from different cuisines. Unfortunately, most of them are far from our hotel, but we have a few options available.
20.29 Two 33 centiliter Coca Cola, two pairs of cutlery and a napkin have each been presented to us at the Turkish restaurant Saray Grill. Now we also got bread. Soon we will also receive the main dishes that we ordered. 20.58 When I went to ask for the bill for all the good things we ate, the waiter came with a porcelain dish with some kind of rice pudding. Very good, very filling and very free. 21.20 Praise be to God that we stay so close! Now we don't want to eat again for a while. We were really full. Partly this is probably due to the fact that the stomachs have had time to shrink a little during the last two days of starvation. 22.31 I couldn't make coffee in the capsule machine we have in our room. Hardly any liquid at all came out. The coffee that came out was weak. Most of the water, more than I added to the tank ended up inside the machine and had to be poured out. It seems that this day ends with a coffee tragedy. 23.15 Another day in France comes to an end. Luckily we have another sleep-in tomorrow.
Peter awaits dinner at Saray Grill.
Wednesday 4th of January
09.22 Another French night is history. Another day is here in front of us. Short and intensive stops provide experiences but also leave their mark. We never seem to stand still. We are always on our way somewhere. Today, first of all, we will leave Marseille.
10.43 Something that disturbs and ruins this trip is the late check-ins at the various hotels. Every other hotel has check-in only at 15:00. Then we have to drag our backpacks with us if we want to have time to see the cities properly. In addition, the lunches will be simple at best or not happening at all. 11.34 After checking out, we managed to climb the steep and long stairs of Escalier Gare Saint-Charles. Now we are back at the Saint Charles station and awaiting track information. Now it came. We will soon be at track B, let's go. 11.41 The QR reader at the entrance to the track was tough, but we got onto the platform. I suggested before everything worked out that we should go through another gate because there were staff there. Now it was just another passenger. Here on board we have been asked by a lady if this is the train to Marseille? Marseille?, that's where we are, we answered. Oh, said the lady, I mean Toulon. Then you are right, said Christer. We have to instill confidence that most often get questions like this during the trips. We have to appear as someone who has full control of the situation. 12.15 Tunnels and Mediterranean views vary the views from our train. It's a leisurely journey down towards the French Riviera. 12.37 The conductor just checked the tickets that we have in our mobiles.
The morning began by conquering the Escalier Gare Saint-Charles stairs.
Gare de Marseille Saint-Charles.
We got off a big train and saw a small train.
Gare de Toulon.
Christer takes a break at Place de la Liberté, Toulon.
The poet François Fabié welcomed us to the park.
13.06 Arriving in Toulon, we learned from previous days experience and have bought something to consume from a kiosk at the railway station. Now we are sitting on a bench in the square Place de la Liberté for a very small lunch. My ham and cheese sandwich is called Swedish for some reason. Here in Toulon we were greeted by bright sun and a blue sky. It's really nice.
13.32 It was certainly the bread that was Swedish. It reminded me of the Swedish Polarkaka. We have discussed early childhood memories and also how we´ll spend this day. It is sunny and almost summer warm. We still have an hour until our hotel room is ready for us. Toulon, located on the Mediterranean Sea southeast of Marseille, has 164,899 inhabitants. The city is France's largest military base and it was here that Napoleon defeated the English which made Napoleon a general. Toulon's municipal coat of arms actually has great similarities to the Swedish flag. 13.55 Outside the Jardin Alexandre 1er, Alexander I's garden/park, we have seen a memorial from the First World War. Now we sit and enjoy the sun inside the park on each reclining chair. A young girl singing about her mother walks past us. 14.27 On the way to the hotel, my path was crossed by temptations. A waitress brought a tray with a cold beer and a hot espresso. I didn't fall for the temptation, not then anyway. 14.47 Checking in at Celenya Hôtel (https://hotel-celenya-toulon.com) took a little time but went well. The elevator is small and it took two trips to get both of us and our backpacks. Now we are in room 302. The hotel seems to have a continental theme. Our room has a touch of Africa. Best of all, however, is that we have a balcony. 15.51 We are then again ready to familiarize ourselves with the current home location. This time it will probably just be an elevator ride for us when we go out.
Peter reads a book in Jardin Alexandre 1er, Toulon.
Relaxing in the sun.
Opéra de Toulon.
Avenue Colbert, Toulon.
Place Victor Hugo, Toulon.
At Quai Cronstadt in the port of Toulon.
16.02 Just now, a colleague to someone we met on the trip was passed. I will get back to you with details on this. Now we are down in the peaceful harbor, Port de Toulon. A little further away, there is a sculpture of someone pointing out over the sea. It is called Génie de la Navigation.
16.27 The port is left behind us as we cross a square with a beautiful church, Saint François de Paule. We are heading towards the city center again. 16.43 After photographing the built-in cathedral Cathédrale de Notre-Dame-de-la-Seds, we are back at a café in the Columbus Café & Co chain. This is what I meant when I wrote about a colleague forty minutes ago. This venue is located on Place Pierre Puget. 17.07 There has been drama at a high level here at Columbus. First, I was rear-ended and was about to fall backwards off my chair. Then a glass committed suicide some distance away. It dived from the tray it was on and into the stone floor. As I said, it happened some distance away with glass debris sliding towards us. I like this chain. Are they available outside of France? 18.09 While we were drinking our coffee, Christer had instructions about tomorrow's fast train journey sent to him. It is information about when we should be at the station, how we should walk and measurements for our luggage. Are our backpacks too big? On the way home the necessary purchases were made at Carrefour City. 19.09 A search on the internet suggests that it is best to pay the baggage fee, so now we have done it.
The sun warms nicely in the port of Toulon.
Place Louis Blanc, Toulon.
Église Saint François de Paule, Toulon.
We visit Columbus Café & Co.
Christer is ready for coffee consumption.
Hotel des Arts, colorful art museum in Toulon.
20.08 It's time to leave the room to go out for an evening walk. Another matter is to find the place that will serve us dinner.
20.21 We are still unsuccessful in our search for a building where we can dine. We are not going to give up and we want to eat cooked food. 20.59 Once again we have been hit by the fact that so many restaurants are closed. After further fruitless searching, we decided to go to the hamburger restaurant Big Fernand (https://bigfernand.com) to eat just a Big Fernand. There will be hamburgers with drinks, side dishes and dessert. The WC is here for women, men, people in wheelchairs, llamas and cats. 21.41 It was really quality burgers, culinary strips and this included a delicious dessert. We are satisfied with everything except the price. It is expensive to eat in France. 23.09 With the help of internet radio, we listen to the semi-finals of the JVM in ice hockey, Sweden vs Czech Republic. It was 1-1 after full time and now four minutes of extra time remain. 23.17 With less than a minute left, the match is decided. The Czech Republic scores and is in the final. 23.35 Now we have revived an old tradition, the balcony beer. Despite the chilly evening air, we have been standing out on the balcony drinking beer. They are from the Fischer brewery in Alsace. The beer is amber and light, Ambrée and Blonde.
Big Fernand will be the evening's dinner restaurant.
A balcony beer at Celenya Hôtel.
You can see 91 photos from January 2 in this photoalbum.
You can see 52 photos from January 3 in this photoalbum.
You can see 80 photos from January 4 in this photoalbum.