We were attracted to Martigues (often referred to as the Venice of Provence) after it featured in the thriller tv series ‘Prime Target’. Having now visited Martigues, I have to say, I’m not convinced that much of the series was filmed in Martigues but, no matter, we’re delighted it brought us to the place.
This gorgeous little town in the Bouche du Rhone department of Provence is often referred to as the Venice of Provence and it is easy to understand why. It straddles the four mile long Caronte Canal at the canal’s eastern end on the Etang de Berre (a massive lagoon or inland sea). The western end of the canal leads directly into the Mediterranean Sea.
Unfortunately, our drive in to Martigues became a bit of a joke with the Van’s Sat Nav system once again excelling in terms of getting it wrong. The drive from Sainte Croix is not a pretty one as it leads past a large and ugly oil refinery but worse was yet to come with the Sat Nav totally missing the large car park which I was aiming for and; instead, leading me up on to the huge viaduct which spans the Canal de Caronte and; then,when I was slap bang in the middle of the viaduct, telling me I had arrived at my destination. It then turned itself off leaving me somewhat stranded. To be fair, the car park (recommended by Park4Night) was directly underneath the bridge but even so.
Eventually I was parked up on an exceedingly grubby car parking space underneath the viaduct and we began the short walk into Martigues along the side of the Canal de Caronte. I should perhaps explain at this stage that Martigues was originally three distinct villages on the Etang de Berre (with the village of Ferrieres to the north, Jonquieres to the south and the island village simply known as L’Ile in between them) and that they were merged at the instigation of Henry III of France some time during the 16th century. That last piece of information is probably of no interest to you whatsoever but… you know what I’m like. We were on the Jonquieres bank of the canal and planned to walk to the most easterly of it’s bridges and; then cross to L’Ile (supposedly the prettiest part of the town) and; therafter, to Ferrieres (for a scout around and to take lunch); before returning to Jonquires (with it’s labyrinth of lanes) and then back to the Van.
The walk into town along the canal side was straightforward and easy although, Nala and her wheels attracted a great deal of (friendly) interest from the many anglers fishing from the promenade and our progress was therefore slow. No matter, the weather was great and we had all day. Looking across the canal from Jonquieres, L’Ile looks fabulous but once we’d crossed the (swing) bridge and started to wander the small island it proved nothing less than stunning. The canals with their little bridges, the colourful houses and charming fishing boats (it is said that the boat owners would paint their houses with the paint left over from painting their boats) and, in particular, the Miroir aux Oiseaux are enchanting.
In the 19th and early part of the 20th centuries the town became a magnet for painters; Eugene Delacroix, Renoir, Raol Dufy and Charles Malfroy, to name but a few. Renoir did one particular painting in 1888, ‘Port of Martigues’, which captures everything I see and like about Martigues (see below) but; another artist whose work I like and which perhaps best reflects the fishing port of yore is Charles Malfroy .
This is a town where the churches give way to the port areas in terms of beauty but, having said that, the town is blessed with three principal churches – one in each of the villages as were. There’s the Church of Saint Genies in Jonquieres, Eglise de Sainte Madeline (Church of Saint Marie-Madaleine) on L’Ile and Church of Saint Louis in Anjou in Ferrieres. I didn’t get to see inside them all. It wouldn’t have been fair on Vanya and/or our dogs but I did get inside the Eglise de Sainte Madaleine and it is as fine a church as you would expect in such a wondrous place.
We wandered all three aspects of the town and it really is something special but, for me, the Miroir aux Oiseaux takes the biscuit. There are however a few other random photos…
We made time to eat at a small bar-restaurant by the water in Ferrieres. Well, I did. Vanya didn’t fancy anything on the menu and so she sat and waited while I ate a seafood gratin (containing octopus, cuttlefish, prawns and mussels – it wasn’t bad) and then we walked across the town’s swing bridge to a tiny creperie in Jonquieres where Vanya ordered a galette and I partook of a crepe with lemon and sugar. The crepe was so good, Vanya also ordered one and then declared it to be the best she had ever eaten. I couldn’t argue with that.
But I’ve written enough for now. The weather in the north of Italy isn’t looking too good at the moment so; we’ll edge closer to the border but stay in the south of France for a few days longer. We’ve each been to Monaco before but, that aside, the Cote d’Azur is somewhere we’ve not seen a great deal of. I’m almost certain Vanya will have somewhere in mind…