Pétanque'd

One of La Ciotat's many claims to fame is the invention of a well-known game in Southern France: pétanque. This is the game you see old men playing a lot in French films and other depictions rife with cliche. It's played with a little ball (cochonnet) made of wood and larger balls made of metal. The point is sort of like a larger, no-stick-required version of billiards: you throw a big ball and try to make it get as close to the little ball as possible without touching it or moving it. You are, however, allowed to knock your opponent's ball farther away from the little ball. It is also called "boules" in English-speaking areas (namely England) which is a misnomer of the balls (boules) for the game itself (pétanque). 

In 1907, native son of La Ciotat, Jules Lenoir, invented the game, which went on to become famous throughout France and certain other regions where French has had an influence. The first recorded version of  pétanque is in Ancient Rome, where they played what is now known as bocce--still popular in Italy! This version, anglicized, is known as bocci ball in the United States, and the version I remember most distinctly from my childhood. 

In addition to the Italian bocce, there is a similar, older French game called jeu provençal where you take running start to throwing your big ball--fundamentally different from pétanque, where both feet must be firmly planted when throwing. The name of the game is derived from this stance, in fact. The field where one plays pétanque is called a terrain. The first person or team to score 13 points is the winner. Interestingly, the area around La Ciotat is the 13th department of France, known also as the Bouches-du-Rhône. The larger region is Provence-Alpes-Côtes d'Azur. 

Calanques--Mugel

Here are--as promised--some photos of the other calanques near Parc Mugel in La Ciotat. There is a small botanical garden and a regional park, where the calanques are, as well as a public beach. It's way too cold to be swimming now that the Mistral has come to stay, but these photos were taken a couple of weeks ago, when the weather was still 15C, or around 60F. You can explore the trails, the park or just have a picnic! It's quite beautiful, even at this time of year, since the sun is out most days in Provence, and the sky is a deep blue that goes on forever.

It kills me how people around here are bundled up as if they're leading excursion to Siberia when the temperature hasn't even hit the freezing point (it's about 5C/40F during the day), though I've been known to complain myself...you get used to a warm climate veeeeery quickly, it seems! As mentioned, the wind is what really does you in: wind chill makes all the difference, and I'd wager that drops the "feels like" temp a good ten degress--all the way down to below freezing! Imagine!

Anyway, enjoy the pictures:

Calanques--Figuerolles

One of the important physical landmarks and main tourist attractions of La Ciotat are the calanques, or the coves, which are a few minutes' walk from the city center.  The calanques are jutting hills of conglomerate and metamorphic rock that line the Mediterranean coast. There are also caves within the hills which you can explore alone or with a tour guide. 

This one is particularly famous--it's on all of the post cards!

It is still possible to swim in the Figuerolles  cove because even though the outside air temperature is in the low 60s F/16-19 C, the water temperature is a nice 77 F/25 C! And here in the shelter of the coves, the wind isn't so bad.

Next, I will post pictures of the Mugel--more to come!