Bastille Day Paris

“Paris is not France”—-Anonymous

We awoke in Paris on Bastille Day and rode the Metro to the military parade—three jets fly over with red white and blue smoke and soldiers march in parade. Having marched in several military parades it was better than average and the French armed services have unique and varied uniforms. I thought the hats some of them wore were a little too 19th century for my taste. The streets around the parade route were all blocked so getting around became a nightmare—-we just wanted to go to the Louvre to see some art. After about 2 hours of struggling to get through we finally made it after the parade ended. Thanks to a friend’s advice we went to a relatively unknown entrance on the side of the building and got right in…for free avoiding a huge line by the front pryamid. They let the proletariats in for free on Bastille Day and once inside wasn’t terribly crowded.
That night we rode the Metro back to a spot near the Eiffel Tower along the Seine and watched a 30 minute fireworks show. Viva la France!

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