This morning we woke up early to take full advantage of the city of Palma in Mallorca. The ship is very clever by charging per person to take shuttle buses from the port to the center of the city. As soon as we get to the center we are determined to rent bikes and ride around the city with our new friends. Fortunately they also have an iPhone app of the city that shows us where we are in relation to popular city sites. The most treacherous being the castle Bellver on the hill, which of course we decide to bike. While the view was beautiful, it was slightly disappointing inside. Thankfully the bike path was downhill from there. Once back in the center we headed to the Arab baths which were extremely disappointing. No in-ground pools, no side rooms meant to be a sauna. We paid 2€ to sit in a garden named a bath. Lunch consisted of paella and tapas, and an angry waiter who accidentally brought us 4 pitchers of sangria instead of one pitcher and four glasses. Drinking and biking on tiny bike paths seemed a bit risky.
Our next stops were the church of San Francisco and la playa bike path. However once on board we found that we would not be docking in Marseille due to windy conditions but instead in the port of Toulon and San sur mer. Many people were upset and crowding the excursion desk. According to Paul, the English speaking host, many French people that boarded in Marseille had driven and parked at the port to catch the ship. Therefore, they have to arrange for transport for all those passengers from Toulon to Marseille. After last years accident, they don’t want to take any risks trying to park the ship at a windy port. Overnight the ship was extremely rocky. I have not experienced such turbulence on a cruise before.
Apparently Marseille is going through some sort of cultural restoration where they’re knocking down the city and rebuilding. I thought France was in dire financial troubles but what do I know. Hopefully Toulon will make up for the change in schedule.
Seasoned Traveler 
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