Cassis

Today on the menu: Cassis. Our international group left late in the morning from Gare Routière. The lady in the information center had said that we had to change in Aubagne, but our Cartreize bus went directly to Cassis. Our group was very big; it’s always nice to get to know new international students. We weren’t the only people going to Cassis; the elderly probably went there for the wine.

Cassis is a village not far from Marseille at the Mediterranean Sea. It’s surrounded by big rocks. Therefore, the beaches aren’t very long and the view is - as anywhere I’ve been in the past 2 ½ weeks – great. I like mountains and any landscapes that are different from The Netherlands. Cassis has a little port, where I could see some nice yachts. Apparently, it was a special day in Cassis, because we saw many wine stands and a traditional music group in the center of the village. The atmosphere was wonderful, though it was a bit crowded. We lied on the beach (pebbles) near the little port. Many tanned people didn’t mind walking and swimming topless, which I found a little bit strange. The water was ice-cold for us, but the Finnish guys in our group loved it!

When we wanted to go back, the bus had already left to Aix (too early). I believe that the French buses don’t really care about the bus schedule, that’s my experience with the navettes of the Cartreize network. Luckily, a bus (2.70 euros) took us to Marseille. We had to go by subway (1.50 euros) to the famous Arc de triomphe of Marseille to catch the Cartreize bus to Aix. It took us 2 ½ hours to arrive at the Gare Routière and I was glad to be home.