Smart Car

I'm amazed at the amount of small cars in France (and Europe in general). Having come from the land of SUV's, Hummers, pickup trucks and mini-vans, it's a bit of a shock to see so many little cars. Most of them are European makes (of course!) like Volksvagen, Opel, MiniCoupe, and SmartCar. They're so much better on gas mileage and therefore better for the environment. Here's a pic of a SmartCar that I found in my neighborhood. This one is a two seater but there are some 4 door models around. They're so small and compact they can park sideways. How handy! Especially in a city that's known for its lack of parking spots. I even saw some SmartCars while I was home in Canada but I'm wondering just how well they'll do in our Canadian Prairie winters. I wish them well!

I think the best way to get around in Marseille is on a motorcycle or moped. You can cut through traffic and drive down the center between the lanes of traffic. They even have some scooters with seats or pedal motorbikes (you use the pedals like a bike to run the motor). The public transit system is pretty good but you do have to wait up to 1/2 hour for the bus to come by. And then there's walking, which is what I do most. I haven't tried biking yet because 1) I don't have a bike and 2) I'm not brave enough to bike in this traffic (yet). So for now, it's public transit, walking and bumming rides. I'll have to find a friend that owns a SmartCar!