Webquest 5: Marseille to the gorges of Verdon

I was inspired by some of the other webquests I’ve seen to devote this one to some of France's more beautiful sights outside of the cities. So, I wanted to start on the french riviera in the city of Marseille. The city was founded around 600 B.C.E. by Greeks as a trading port, though nearby cave art demonstrates that the area has been inhabited for at least 29000 years.

After visiting the ruins of the old Greek harbor above, I went to the coast, and saw among other things the Château d'If.

The Château d'If is a fortress built on an island about a mile away from Marseille. Also along the coast by Marseille are the calanques, a picturesque coastline of steep cliffs.

There is a cave underneath the calanques that is only accessible by an entrance 37 meters under water that contains numerous cave paintings dating back to 27000 B.C.E. This area around the Mediterranean sea has its own kind of shrubland called garrigue.

 

I was hungry and wanted to try some local foods before leaving Marseille, so I went to a restaurant and ordered a bouillabaisse, a soup made from 3 or more different kinds of fish, leeks, onions, tomatoes, celery, potatoes and a rouille, "a mayonnaise made of olive oil, garlic, saffron and cayenne pepper on grilled slices of bread."

I also had some Pastis, an anise flavoured liqueur, usually 80 to 90 proof. I left Marseille and went out into the Provence region. One of the things Provence is famous for is almost endless fields of lavender.

I finally reached my final destination for the quest: Lac de Sainte-Croix.

Into the Lac de Sainte-Croix flows the Verdon river through the Gorges du Verdon.

My webquest adventures have convinced me that eastern France from the Mediterranean to Germany is one of the most beautiful regions on earth.