Vieux-Port

The Old Port, Vieux-Port, is perhaps the nicest part of Marseille, where most of the tourists like to hang around. This area (and La Canebière) feels less dangerous than many other parts of the city. Panier is the historic district just west of the old port, with hills with narrow streets filled with old rundown buildings and poor people. Old Port is guarded by two massive forts. The northern quayside was rebuilt by the architect Fernand Pouillon after the destruction by the Nazis in 1943.

The Old Port begins where La Canebière ends. This fence is one of the things that destroys the nice "harbour feeling".

Here you can find boats of more "normal" sizes than on the Riviera.

View towards Fort Saint-Nicolas. We eat a pizza at the harbour that were very expensive and didn't taste especially good.

A small church facing the port.

View towards Nôtre-Dame de la Garde on this 160 m high limestone hill. From here you can take the small "tourist train" to the top.

You can also take a boat to the 4 islands, among them the famous prison island If.

A boat restaurant in Vieux Port.

Panier:

Hôtel de ville, the city hall of Marseille.

Hôtel Dieu is a former hospital with a very grande interior, that will be transformed into a luxury hotel managed by Inter-Continental.

Panier is filled with historical, but rundown houses and winding streets.

Cathédrale de la Major is a grande cathedral at the harbour. The Bishop of Marseille is buried in one crypt.

The cathedral was built in a Byzantine style just like Nôtre-Dame de la Garde (but Romano Byzantine). Unfortunately a strange man was disturbing us just after we took the pictures.

Detail of Cathédrale de la Major from 1893.

A statue of Belsunce de Castelmoron just outside the cathedral, where he is buried. He was a jesuit that became the bishop of Marseille.

View of Nôtre-Dame de la Garde from Panier.