Provence, France. Holy Shit

Marseille Panoramic from the top of Notre Dame de la Garde

As everything in Europe is so close together, I couldn’t justify a trip across the Atlantic for Venice alone.  Next up was the South of France.  I'd never been to France before and to be honest, I didn't know what to expect.   Initially planning on having a central base of operations and utilizing the rail system to get around the Provencal region, we stayed in Marseille.  It has the airport and main train station of the region, yet it has a reputation as a big, dirty, dangerous city.  We were informed that the airport was roughly 15 miles from the city center and the cabs charge 50-60 euro to drive you there.  Figuring that a round trip by cab would end up being 100-120 euro and the daily train tickets would certainly add up, we decided to rent a car.  I’ve never driven in Europe and actually looked forward to the adventure.  Naturally, all the cheap rentals are manual transmission, which I can’t drive (dumb American that I am).  My wife can drive stick, but is not comfortable doing so in unfamiliar, hectic, massive, foreign cities.  Upgrade we must.  Also, GPS was essential and the only car they had which combined automatic transmission with built in GPS was a sweet-ass, root beer-brown, never been driven Peugot convertible (it had 3 km on the odometer).  This car was bad ass. 

Upon arrival into Marseille, the streets were very hectic and narrow, and we quickly realized that we shouldn't have rented such a big car.  Imagine the congestion of Manhattan with hills and mountains, all based on a twisty street system that predates the automobile by quite a few centuries (Marseille is France’s oldest city).   We still managed to find our B&B (Le Petit Jardin) with little difficulty; however, parking was not a realistic possibility.  Thankfully, our host, Mauro, hopped in the car and showed us some secret back streets to park on. 

The only problem was that this part of town had extremely narrow, windy streets with very tight turns.  Needless to say, I promptly drove the Peugot into a wall, grinding the brand new bumper pretty badly.  We did find parking (I’d like to point out how I’m very good at parallel parking) and returned to the B&B.  It was literally a little slice of heaven amidst one of the craziest cities I’ve ever been to.  

 

We dropped our bags and sipped a deliciously unique water with rosemary syrup concoction offered to us by Mauro.  Syrups, both fruit and herb based, are apparently a big part of Provence. 

Despite its reputation, the city welcomed us with open arms.  We walked along the coastal road with no problems whatsoever.  At no point did I feel like we were in danger or in a bad area.  At one point, when we were visibly lost, a young French couple volunteered to help us in perfect English.  We didn't even have to ask; they offered. 

Our destination was Chez Jeannot, a restaurant situated near a small marina and under an arched bridge where we could gaze longingly at the Mediterranean from our table.  The restaurant was recommended by our host and was quite excellent.  To me, nothing is more important than finding a good meal, especially for your first one in a new town.  With so many options in a big city, it’s very easy to find a sub par meal.  Interestingly enough, one of the unique aspects of Marseille is that despite being a very large city that blends many cultures, it does not cater to an English speaking crowd. 


What that means is the menus are exclusively in French, and the staff speaks very little to no English.  Keep in mind that I know NO French.  My wife took a class 14 years ago and I downloaded a dictionary/phrasebook on my iPhone, but that was it.  We had to do our best to interpret the menu items with little more than willpower.

One of the regional traditions that I was already aware of was the herbs de provence.  Legend has it that the local meats are more flavorful because the animals free range graze upon wild growing herbs and spices.  I'm not so sure if that is true, but I do know that when cooked with, the herbs are something outstanding.  Traditionally, they were an unspecified mixture of whatever grew locally.  Seeking to capitalize on the magical stigma the herbs gained, spice companies started to package "herbs de provence" for sale with official combinations that were never before strictly adhered to in the region.  It seemed to me that the mixtures varied slightly from place to place and many restaurants prided themselves on their own blends.  All in all, the herbs typically can include basil, fennel, thyme, majoram, savory (a French herb), and even perhaps lavender. 

The first item we ordered was champignons au provencal.  The mushrooms were sauteed in butter and the herbs previously described.  They were served with a small green salad with a Dijon vinaigrette.  As you can imagine, the mushrooms were mind blowing.  This was one of the dishes I describe as making you weak at the knee even if you're sitting down.  So simple, so delicious, so fresh.  It was excellent. 

Up next was a salad with crostini and breaded and fried chevre, or goat cheese.  Chevre is ubiquitous in Provence and is as universally excellent. 

 

For the main course, we ordered a trois fromage pizza.  I can't believe how pizza is even more popular in Europe than it is in America.  I was always given the impression that they don't eat it as much as we do and it's some sort of bastardization of Italian food that they couldn't get away with selling over there.  I'm not sure where I got that idea, because it's literally everywhere.  Even the French took their own approach to the old favorite and this one didn't disappoint at all.  The three cheeses that were used were extremely savory and rich and blended together perfectly.

More to come!