France's oldest city, a Mediterranean metropolis, often referred to as the country's gate to the Orient. Here exotic meets traditional. Azure sea meets arid hills. More notable than anything is Marseille's essence of rebellion.
Founded under the name Massalia some 600 years BC by Greek sailors and merchants from Foça (in modern day Izmir, Turkey), the city's history is saturated with rebellious spirit.
Throughout the middle ages it frequently fought back against the various European royalties which sought to control it. It played a cornerstone role in the French revolution, in fact giving the name to the country's national anthem 'La Marseillaise'.
Today rebellion is tangible, it's scrawled all over the walls in shapes, colours and murals. It runs in the blood of the people. The melting pot of ethnicities and cultures, of voices all fusing together in the alleys and avenues. The distinctive accent and the reputation for a less-than-patient temperament. The proud declaration of any Marseillais that they are surely Marseillais before they are French. Renewal is felt in the infamous 'Mistral', the north western gale which visits Marseille since ancient times, reinvigorates it, keeps the city constantly on the move.
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