The plant trip was interesting as I had never been to a silicon wafer fab before. We did not see a lot but it was enough and the presentations were well done.
We went back to the campus for another poor lunch (foodwise) but with plenty of wine. The afternoon witnessed rather dull sessions but then we left via bus for Marseille to meet the spouses. The trip was quick and comfortable and we were all whisked away on a little sightseeing train to go to Notre Dame de la Garde. This large church crowns Marseille on a hill top and is impressive from afar. What was more impressive is the interior which Randy and I both loved. Colorful mosaics abounded and it was the best church interior we had seen since Aya Sofia (and we saw a lot of churches along the way!). The views to the sea and city were also impressive.
The little train then went back to the Vieux Port (Old Port) where Randy and I walked the streets. Marseille is not beautiful and it very busy and more than a little dirty. At our walk's end we were near the moored boat where our dinner was to take place and a free classical concert given by a young people's orchestra was in progress. The setting was nice and the music was great. A nice, short respite from the business of the day.
Dinner aboard was a festive affair which started with a weird but not unpleasant rum punch followed by seafood risotto, fish with vegetables, salad with goat cheese and a delicious lemon creme cake for dessert. White and rose wines were served.
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| The Notre Dame de la Garde at Marseille |
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| Islands off the coast of Marseille |
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| Randy and Alice up top at the Notre Dame location with Marseille below |
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| The beautiful bell tower with a large gold Madonna statue |
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| Beautiful mosaic ceiling |
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| Detail in alcove |
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| Nave with mosaics of birds and ships |
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| View from the lower level crypt |
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| The tower and statue in a perfectly blue sky |
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| Sign for the church |
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| Our sightseeing train (our group actually filled two trains) |
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| The moored ship where we had dinner in Marseille |
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| Nice looking church in Marseille at the Vieux Port |
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| The young people's orchestra with guitarist and conductor |
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| Seafood risotto |
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| Sail boats at the Vieux Port |
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| Happy at our dinner table |
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| Living room at our place in Gardanne - nothing fancy but pretty comfortable and very large |
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| Our kitchen, which is well equipped |
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| Our bed |
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| Sliding glass door in our bedroom with my messy suitcase |
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| Our toilet "closet" separate from the bathroom |
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| Our bathroom (no toilet) that had a stone shower floor, not cut stones like tile but polished, small round stones |
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| The nuclear plant near our place (though not visible from our house) - no meltdown yet |
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| Jeff explaining his poster to a happy customer (Andres Carrano from RIT) |
