Les Calanques

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Colorful kayaks in the famous French fjords,Calanques national park, Calanque d'En Vau bay, Cassis,Marseille, Southern France, Europe; Shutterstock ID 552162244

Shutterstock / Gaspar Janos

Overview

It feels like a miracle to find a refuge such as the Parc National des Calanques only a short distance from grimy, pressured Marseille. In parts of this diminutive 85-sq-km patch of scrubby, convoluted promontories, it's easy to believe you're miles from civilisation. Then a twist in a pine-clad gully reveals the entirety of France's second metropolis spread out within apparent touching distance; the calanques appear almost as its uninhabited suburbs.


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