Rockin' rollin', swingin', oh Marseille!

As we rolled, rocked, and swung on the anchor in Verdon, I kept watch as Bob slept unperturbed😴 while sleeping sideways to keep from rolling! We had agreed to keep watch in case the anchor dragged, but it turned out I was the only one who kept watch🧐😡! I stayed up until 0500 hrs. watching the moon set, the constellations drift, and the harbour lights flicker, ensuring we weren't ending up on the beach or the rocks. After sleeping a couple of hours🥱, we got organized to sail to Marseille. The clear blue sky and glorious sun were deceiving as there were weather warnings of swells and winds💨 +50 kms! Bob said, "It'll be fine; it's all downwind." 😬🙄We hauled the dinghy aboard and set the mainsail double reefed (smaller) and headed out. As soon as we got out of the harbour and into the swells🌊 and wind, we realized it was too much sail, took down the mainsail, and let out a small portion of the jib. In spite of locking things down below, there were doors swinging and banging and canisters falling from the shelves creating a small mess of scattered containers and food. I secured things, and once we turned downwind, it was relatively smooth surfing! The wind howled, whistled, and moaned along with boat creaks, sail flapping, and alarms warning of +25 knot winds. Unsettling, so Bob steered and I watched the coastline. The coast has small communities dotted along the limestone cliffs worn away by wind and waves. Otherwise, it's quite scrubby looking, and the houses seem to blend in even with their faded red roofs. After 4 hours and only seeing 1 other sailboat,  a freighter, and a cruise ship, on went the motor, we rolled the sail in and came towards the harbour. We looked for the conspicuous landmarks - Notre Dame high on the hill, 3 church domes near the water, and the Fort tower to lead us past the piers and the buoys. Relief! I had another moment of panic when the Capitainerie asked if we had a reservation...but he found us a spot. The harbour is packed with boats without finger docks between, so reversing in is necessary to make it easier to get off. Fortunately, our neighbours had lots of bumpers to fend us off, and Bob did an excellent job squeezing us in. After a tidy up and a late lunch, we walked around the harbour that was bustling with people, cars, motorbikes, bicycles, and ferries coming and going. Nous sommes arrivés!Read more