Marseille’s Noailles quarter: a taste of Africa, in Provence

by Laurel Miller on

The Provencal port city of Marseille has historically been associated with bouillabaisse, and, to a lesser extent, whores, thieves, and the usual debauchery that goes with being a sea port. Things started to turn around about a decade ago, and today it’s a safe, vibrant, thoroughly charming city whose cuisine and culture reflect its past as a colonial trading port with North Africa.

When France acquired Algeria in 1830, Marseille, the second largest port in Europe, saw a major influx of immigrants from North and West Africa that continues to this day. You can even take a ferry to Tunisia, 550 nautical miles away.

I was in Marseille researching a bouillabaisse story when I serendipitously discovered the Noailles, the city’s Arab quarter. It’s located a short walk from the Vieux Port, Marseille’s bustling, bar-and-restaurant-lined waterfront, off of the main artery of La Canebiere. It was like stumbling upon a Moroccan souk: narrow, cobbled streets lead away from a central square that is home to a daily outdoor produce market. Small, dark, cluttered shops sell tea sets and spices; markets carry everything from meat and seafood to Middle Eastern pastries, dates, pistachios, glass-like, crystallized whole fruits, and tubs of olives and harissa, a fiery red North African chile paste. It’s the ideal place to pick up edible souvenirs or picnic fixings.

Men in djellabahs sit at outdoor cafes, talking loudly over bracingly strong demitasse’s of coffee, while women draped in sifsaris paw through bins of vegetables. The quarter is a kaleidoscopic mélange of colors, sounds, and smells: rotting produce, incense, sizzling kebabs of chicken and lamb, and the comforting aroma of baking flatbreads and sugary almond cookies. My favorite part of this untouristed neighorhood, however, are the tiny Egyptian, Tunisian, and Algerian food stalls and bake shops that specialize in mahjouba–giant, rectangular-folded crepes filled with sautéed tomato, red pepper, onion, and harissa.

The takeaway shop Le Soleil d’Egypte makes a particularly delicious version, as well as selling a variety of North African flatbreads that are baked fresh throughout the morning. Mahjouba are a satisfying, inexpensive (under two dollars) snack–I was so besotted, I even took a couple on the train to Cassis with me. But they’re also special in that they’re a nod to the Marseillaise love of street foods.

All over the city, particularly near the port, street food vendors sell everything from croque monsieur and pissaladiere, to panisses–delicate, fried chickpea flour cakes. I love them all, yet visiting the Noailles for mahjouba is my pick. They’re a quintessential–if little known–Marseillaise treat: a melding of sunny Mediterranean vegetables, classic French cuisine, and North African culture.

For a harissa recipe, click here.

[Photo credits: man shopping, Flickr user Trilli Bagus; buildings, Flickr user Marind is waiting for les tambours de la pluie; rooftops, Flickr user cercamon]

Ask Gadling: What do I do if my flight gets canceled?

by Grant Martin on

We’ve all been there. Fourteen seconds after getting to the airport in a mindless blur you look up at the departure boards and see that dreaded word next to your flight: CANCELED. Your weekend appointment, your deeply important business meeting, your tickets to the Knicks game – everything is suddenly on the line thanks to the fault of one airline that was supposed to get you to your destination on time. And now you’re stuck at the airport.

Flight cancellations happen all the time and there’s little that can be done about their occurrence. Mechanical, weather and act-of-God delays happen all of the time, but the result of their action doesn’t have to ruin your day – in fact, in a few cases it might improve it.

The first thing to remember: don’t panic. Airlines are contractually required to get you from point A to point B, and most carriers have enough capacity to get you there in a reasonable amount of time – so you don’t have to worry about never making it to your destination. How and when you get there is another question.

After you’ve collected yourself, look at the departures board and see if there are any other identical flights on the same or different airline to your route listed. Something on your airline at a later time is the most ideal case, but make sure to take note of any other airlines operating on that route – it might come in handy later.

View more Ask Gadling: Travel Advice from an Expert or send your question to ask [at] gadling [dot] com.

Next, despite what the agent at your departure gate might suggest, don’t jump into line behind the 200 other people on your flight waiting to get rebooked. Each one of those people has precedence over you on the soonest departing flight, and the faster you can speak to someone the faster you can snatch up an available seat. Thus, to get ahead, do one of the following:

  1. Find a free agent at another gate or find a rebook station. Most major airline hubs have manned stations where rebooking and organization can take place. In fact, most gate agents have access to the booking system. If you find a (free) agent and calmly outline your situation, most of them would be willing to help you rebook.
  2. Call the airline. Even if you don’t have access to a fancy elite line, it’s often easier to speak to a phone agent to rebook your ticket. Look down at your boarding pass for your record locator and/or your ticket number to provide everything you need for the phone agent. As an added bonus, representatives on the phone will probably be less stressed out and thus better equipped to help out in your situation.

There’s also the issue of routing. It always helps to have potential flights or strategies in mind when you walk up to the agent for rebooking. Remember those flights on other carriers? Make sure you suggest those routes if the ticket agent wants to put you on a flight that you don’t want to take. If you had a connection earlier, you can also suggest to be put on a direct flight to your destination. Cutting out the extra flight (and layover) can actually save you time in the long run.

A great way to suggest alternate routing is to jump online and check the available outbound flights. Plugging your departure and arrival airports into a tool such as seatcounter.com or even into your airline’s website will usually give you all of the possible routes that can be flown in one day – thus, if you would rather fly through Dallas over Chicago on your way to New York you can politely suggest an alternate route and the ticket agent should have the ability to accommodate your request.

Finally, if your cancellation involves being stuck in a transit city overnight or for a long period, make sure to ask for hotel, food or transportation vouchers to compensate for your lost time. Most airlines are obligated to help out so you should take advantage!

Ask Gadling: How do I standby for an earlier flight?

by Grant Martin on

It wasn’t too long ago that it was easy enough to walk up to the counter of an earlier departing flight to a destination of your choice and hitch a ride. The notion, at least back then, was that the empty space you saved on your next flight was insurance for the airline in case something went wrong – you were one less passenger that they had to deal with.

These days of a la carte pricing brought and end to that perk. Simply put, any benefit that a passenger might be able to reap was identified and squashed by the airlines, in this case, by means of a fee. That said, it’s still possible to stand by for an earlier flight, you just need to know the lay of the current land.

Lets start with the basics: in order to have a chance at standing by on an earlier flight, check to make sure that the routing and airline are identical. If you’re flying on American from Los Angeles to Seattle, for example, you can neither fly a two leg flight from LA-Portland-Seattle nor can you fly on the American Airlines codeshare operated by Alaska Airlines.

There also has to be space on the flight. Mind you, can still join the standby list on a full flight, but chances are low that you’re actually going to be awarded a ticket.

View more Ask Gadling: Travel Advice from an Expert or send your question to ask [at] gadling [dot] com.

Not sure how full the flight is? Check out seatcounter.com before you even leave home or work to see your chances of getting a seat. Or, give the airline a quick call and ask for “availability” on the flights prior to yours.

Second, you usually have to be willing to pay. This fee ranges from $50 on upwards and is only waived for some elites on some airlines. American Airlines and Delta, for example, will let elite passengers standby for free, while almost ALL elites on United have to pay (get with the program guys!). Southwest doesn’t charge anyone.

Of course you can always try to sweet talk your way out of this fee. The best way to do this is to analyze your later departing flight and try to reason with the gate agent about your itinerary. If the later flight is overbooked, for example, they may waive your standby fee in lieu of paying to bump a later passenger. If the later flight is delayed or canceled, the same may hold true. There’s also an outside chance that they can forget or take pity on you, so it doesn’t hurt to try to standby (and then balk when they try to charge you).

The key to the whole standby game, however, lies in empowered passengers knowing available routes and loads. To get a head start on this, do your savvy web research (seatcounter) or even call the airline on the way to the airport. Once educated, you have a bit of leverage for negotiating your way onto a flight.

Ask Gadling: How do I get more miles for an airline ticket?

by Grant Martin on

You’re almost there. Seventeen years of flying from Orlando to Detroit in an aluminum tube with no legroom, incessant fees, unruly flight attendants and sky high fares and you’ve finally reached 24,4486 miles. You’ve only got 514 left to go before you reach Eden -that holy, hallowed ground where you turn in those miles for a free ticket to anywhere the airline flies. Oh, the possibilities that await.

But wait! The next flight that you have isn’t scheduled for another three months out and you really want to use those hot fresh miles in your account! Fear not, brave traveler, for there are plenty of ways to earn miles without setting a foot near an airport or even thinking about air travel. We’re talking, of course, about partner mileage credit, the commercial transactions you do in everyday life that can potentially earn you bucketsfull of miles.

Lets start at the top, though. The easiest way to earn a few extra miles is obviously to buy them. Any carrier looking to make a few extra dollars hosts the option to simply buy a few extra miles to top off your account. They’re not cheap, mind you (Delta currently sells 2,000 miles for $56 before fees and taxes), but if you need them in a pinch, they’re available.

Really though, who wants to buy miles when you can earn them by buying something else? Many airlines partner with numerous online retailers who will reward you with miles for purchasing the same old things that you’d normally buy. Netflix, for example, will give you 1500 miles on some carriers for simply joining their service.

View more Ask Gadling: Travel Advice from an Expert or send your question to ask [at] gadling [dot] com.

The most lucrative vendors are among the flower industry, where sites like 1800flowers will reward you with 20 or even 30 miles per dollar spent on flowers. Send your loved ones a $40 bouquet and you’ve got yourself 1200 miles in the bank.

And don’t forget vendors in the travel industry such as hotels or car rental companies, each of which will give you piles of miles per reservation (Hint: look for partner redemptions when you sign up for their loyalty programs).

We should also take a moment to mention mileage credit cards. Most airlines and banks offer credit cards that return one or two miles for every dollar you spend. Depending on your credit and the economy they’ll often offer hefty incentives for enrolling, sometimes up to 100,000 miles per card. Bear in mind, however, that many of these cards come with an annual fee and that interest can quickly offset any miles earned.

All too much investment for a few measly miles? Then check out e-rewards, and myriad other points sites where taking numerous surveys, filling out questionnaires and participating in consumer panels can earn you virtual points good for redemption towards frequent flyer miles. Just make sure that you know how many points you need before you sign up, some of the surveys can be a time consuming endeavor.

And if that’s not enough, keep your eyes on the points hoarding blogs out on the web. Two of my favorites are The Points Guy and View From the Wing where a long lunch session of reading and arm-gnawing will get you a few free miles (and info on how to finagle a few free more). With enough patience, the miles will be flowing in before you know it.

Traveling over Thanksgiving? Here’s the best time to fly

by Grant Martin on

The only thing that’s worse than traveling through congested airports and highways during the Thanksgiving season is the airfare that’s associated with it. Taking advantage of the demand, airlines perennially jack up the prices on everyday airfare, making the simplest of tickets outrageously expensive.

Naturally, the easiest way around these fares is to fly on lower-demand days, or not Tuesday and Sunday. To illustrate this, our friends over at Travelocity put together the above dandy chart to show the differences in fares among travel days. It’s pretty easy to see that the Tuesday and Wednesday before Thanksgiving are the most expensive days to fly. Conversely, departing on Thanksgiving Day and returning on Tuesday, the 30th is most often the cheapest.

Bear in mind that the data above only applies to domestic routes — for travel to foreign countries (where there is no Thanksgiving), airfares can be drastically different and potentially even cheaper. More reason to spend the holidays abroad, we reckon.