Situated on top of a large hill overlooking Marseille is the Church of Our Lady, Notre Dame de la Garde Basilica. It can be viewed from all parts of the city and was actually the first thing that we saw after stepping out of the train station during our visit. I didn't realize that it was a church then and thought that it might be a small castle.
After walking through the city streets and some relatively sketchy neighborhoods, you eventually come to the base of the small mountain on which the church was built.
From there you can climb up to the top via two different foot paths located on either side of the mountain. One more direct and much more plain with a staircase at the end to reach the church entrance. The other goes through a park with trees and some really nice desert landscaping. We went up one side and down the other and I much preferred the greener path myself.
Either way you take it's a bit of a hike though, or maybe more of a pilgrimage given the context. You can also access it by car if you prefer to drive but the parking lot isn't exactly huge, so keep that in mind.
The exterior of the building is decorated with alternating stonework of contrasting colors - white limestone followed by green sandstone that was brought in from Italy. This patterned stone work can be seen throughout the structure but is especially noticeable on the square shaped bell tower.
At its highest point the church is 154 meters tall, so as you can imagine the views from up there are pretty incredible.
There are several platforms that offer panoramic views of the Mediterranean Sea, the small islands in the water and the various parts of the city itself.
When you walk around the church there is a very large cement balconcy that faces towards the Northwestern part of the city. From up there you can see just how big Marseille really is. I knew that it was the second largest city in France but seeing it from that height was something else.
It was almost mind boggling really. Its crazy to think of how many people can all live in one place. It felt like the buildings went on forever and its too bad that it wasn't a nicer day when we were there to really see things well. The cloudy haze (or maybe it was smog, I don't know) really hindered visibility. It was still impressive though nonetheless.
Given its location and the views, its not at all surprising that the Notre Dame is the most visited monument in the city of Marseille.
A Look Inside
The inside of the church is decorated in an elaborate fashion with exquisite marble work and brightly colored pictoral mosaics. It definitely exudes opulence and beauty.
The same alternating pattern seen outside carries into the interior as well, only this time it is made up of an alternating pattern of red and white Spanish marble.
One of my favorite features inside the church aside from the beautiful tile mosaics, were these boat and ship decorations that were hanging from the ceiling.
They were quite unique and seemed very fitting for a church that is situated near the city harbor.
There is also a crypt in the lower part of the church that you can visit but it was very small and very plain so I didn't bother taking any pictures in there.
Heading Down the Mountain
After viewing the church we made our way down the mountain on the opposite side from which we came.
Here is a photo of my wife making faces at me. Seeing the church was one of the first things that we did during our visit. We hadn't even been to our hotel yet so we were both still carrying our bags with us. We recently bought "carry on" travel backpacks to make travel easier and cheaper.
As I mentioned previously the path winds its way through a green space with cacti and other desert-like landscaping.
I don't know what these really tall and spindly plants are called but every time I see them I think of giant asparagus.
By walking around the church above and walking down the different paths you can get 360° view of the surrounding area. Each side is quite different as well which is pretty cool.
At the bottom of the hill on the edge of the park we saw a makeshift shelter that had been built into a small rocky overhang. The shelter was pretty impressive all things considered. It looked like they had some makeshift shelves and a seating area separate from their sleeping spot. It's sad that people have to live outdoors in a hole in some rocks but at the same time I couldn't help but admire their ingenuity.
In a previous post on Marseille I mentioned that the city has a large division between rich and poor and a major problem with poverty and you can see that even around the church.
But despite the somewhat sketchy neighborhoods in the surrounding area the Notre Dame church is definitely worth checking out in Marseille. It has some really great views, some very nice stonework inside and out and definitely one of the nicest interiors that I have seen in a church for quite some time. I would highly recommend it as something to do if you are ever in the city.