Marseilles - a second look

I returned a short week ago from a breathtakingly full tour of Provence - ancient landscapes, long history, delightful people animated by equally delightful food and wine. And architecture: Roman survivors, medieval treasures, Baroque wonders, modernist surprises. So, with the weight of history upon my shoulders (can shoulders have jet-lag too?) I begin my meanderings with a bold, new (relatively) structure in the Old Harbour of Marseilles. 

I introduce Lord Norman Foster, renowned British architect, who in 2013 created the Ombriere, a 22 by 36 metre canopy on tall slender columns in the rejuvenated old harbour area, become a pedestrian concourse. Despite the slim canopy's size it seems to blend into the cityscape, while adding a whole new dimension - the world in mirror image, hovering above one's head.

Here is a link to the Foster PLUS Partners website, who can be relied on to give us an accurate rendering of the project. Some good photos, with thinner crowds than my bus-window shots. 

These photos can't capture the experience of seeing a beautiful old harbour and everything taking place around it, reflected in a gigantic mirror above one's head.

Photo opportunities abound - which I alas, didn't have a chance to explore. It would have been great fun to play with the reflections of the harbour activity in the Ombriere's sleek stainless mirror. Nevertheless, the potential for falling on one's face on the pale granite plaza, distracted by this altered universe, might make it worth a miss. 

Here's a Streetview link if you're inclined to wander the great historic revitalized Mediterranean harbour area along Quai des Belges. 

And a caution for any new readers (perhaps from our most copacetic traveling group?) This is my personal research space as well as a spot for sharing travel stories, where I squirrel away interesting useful sites. Here's one now, thanks to Marselles Tourism!