Marseille is a city on the southeast coast of France. It is the second most populous city in France after Paris with 852,395 inhabitants.
Founded on the Mediterranean coast as Massalia by the Greeks, Marseille is now the largest commercial port in France and the fourth largest in Europe.
Internationally, it is the second city in France to have many representatives from other countries, namely more than seventy consulates. marseille is the administrative capital of the préfecture de région région of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur and the administrative capital of the préfecture départemental département of Bouches-du-Rhône.
Marseille, when we dream of traveling to France, the things that definitely come to mind are the beauty of the Eiffel Tower, the beauty of the Palace of Versailles, while snacking on baguettes and croissants accompanied by accordion music played by street musicians in various parts of Paris. however, have we ever thought about visiting the city of Marseille?
Anthony Bourdain, the world's celebrity chef, once stated that "The French don't seem to want you to go to Marseille." Bourdain's visit to shoot the program Parts Unknown to Marseille at that time was accompanied by question marks and disappointment, even from one of the French government officials.
That's Marseille. The second largest city in France is full of various prejudices and negative labels, especially from the French themselves. This city is known as a city with a high crime rate, a hotbed of drug dealers, armed mafia, full of Muslim immigrants from North Africa, and does not reflect France at all.
The only positive opinion about Marseille may only come from Zinedine Zidane, the legend of French football, who spent his childhood in this city.
Actually, what makes Marseille so foreign to tourists and even shunned by the French.
Marseille, formerly Massilia, is the oldest city in France with a history spanning thousands of years. Marseille has always been a major port and trade route in France, with goods and immigrants arriving from all over the Mediterranean region. while Marseille had become a bustling city, Paris was still a country.
Position as one of the largest ports in the Mediterranean makes Marseille a meeting point for various nationalities. Although France does not recognize a population census based on race, ethnicity, or religion, the average population of Marseille can trace their family tree to those who come from Italy, Corsica, Jews, all Maghreb countries in North Africa, Comoros, Armenia, even to Vietnam.
Traces of multinationalism can be seen clearly from the culinary choices served in this city. In the city center, pizza and kebabs are staples most loved by les Marseillais or Marseille residents. Not infrequently also found various typical Maghreb snacks such as leblebi, tajine, and falafel. the most famous, is none other than bouillabaise, a seafood soup typical of the city of Marseille with fish imported from the Mediterranean sea and spices from various parts of the world.
A long and rich history makes the people of Marseille full of pride and dignity. Marseille residents do not identify primarily as French, but Marseille residents. As the locals say, “First is the sea, then the city of Marseille, and after that is another country called France”.
Marseille is a reflection of the real face of France, which is still struggling to integrate immigrants and descendants of their former colonies into society.
In one scene of the television series Marseille, the main character Robert Taro, played by veteran actor Gerard Depardieu, is the figure of the Mayor of Marseille who is struggling to develop a new economic area on the north side of the city of Marseille.
The northern part of Marseille better known as the Quartiers Nords is a combination of several districts that have the highest poverty and crime rates in France, as many as 28% of the population live on an income below 630 euros or approximately 10 million in rupiah.
Poverty in the Quartiers Nords, with the largest demographic population of African immigrants and Maghreb, directly illustrates the segregation and inequality of social conditions in Marseille. marseille then split into two parts, a modern, orderly, and safe city in the south and a vulnerable, dirty, and impoverished area in the north.
This poverty factor then gave rise to various criminal syndicates in Marseille. Some of the famous criminal modes originating from Marseille are the Marseille Snare, ATM card theft mode and the French Connection mafia heroin from Corsica.
Today, Quartier Nords is still famous for its drug trafficking network and mafia. Although the Corsican heroin mafia is no longer as rampant as it used to be, nowadays it is the children of immigrants who run the marijuana and cocaine mafia network.
The euroméditerranée is a development, youth, and digital economy, the inherent image of inequality, poverty and crime has been attempted to be eradicated by the City of Marseille. Since the momentum of Marseille being chosen as the cultural capital of Europe, Marseille has made various improvements.
Along with the economic decline from the conventional port sector, and the spread of inequality and poverty, Marseille seems to have determined the direction of transformation needed to face change.
Various development projects, urban planning improvements, and digital economic transformation have been realized by the Marseille City Government. The center of all these improvements is still a mega project called Euroméditerranée. In this mega project, the Marseille City Government targets to build 550,000 m2 of office space, create 37,000 new jobs, and repair around 7,000 houses. the location of the Euroméditerranée project is in an area directly adjacent to the Quartiers Nords, as a symbol of efforts to equalize existing gaps.
Along with the economic decline from the conventional port sector, and the spread of inequality and poverty, Marseille seems to have determined the direction of transformation needed to face change.
Marshall also pays great attention to a science and technology-based economy, research, digital-based port logistics management, strengthening the service sector, fostering start-up businesses, and implementing various innovation projects that promote youth creativity.
Marseille's transformation, which has been in progress over the past decade or so, has succeeded in making Marseille a city that is comfortable to live in, more friendly, and future-oriented.
It seems the imagination of France needs to change. Besides enjoying pain au chocolat at the Trocadero, we can also imagine enjoying the expanse of the sea and the blue sky typical of the Côte d'Azur while eating kebabs with galette sauce algérienne in Marseille, the second largest city in France with a distinctive culture and stunning scenery.
However, the city's most enduring characteristic is its readiness to embrace change. The architecture retains a few vestiges of the past. several landmarks, such as the transport bridge crossing the Old Port of Vieux-Port and the Panier district to the north of the port, were destroyed by the occupying German forces.
But now many changes have been made by Marseillais himself. despite the legends attached to them, they are also people who are not sentimental and open to new ideas.