Bastile Day in Paris

Posted for July 14
I got up at 8am to try to catch the Parade on Champs Ellise – what a bad idea. Every street had a detour from road closures. By the time I got the main area, all spots to get a decent view were taken. I ended up sitting in an outdoor café for an hour and a half as I enjoyed my espresso, people watched, saw a few of the jets fly by, and caught a few glances of the parade on the Television.

As soon as the parade ended, I met up with two people who I never met. They were both from the SF and were co-workers of a close friend of mine. We had lunch, walked down Champs Ellise to the Norte Dame and then to the Latin Quarters. Before we parted ways we made arrangements to meet at a 10 to watch the fireworks.

I retuned to my hostel, washed my clothes, as well as my self. I felt sticky and dirty from the heat. There was a little store next to the laundry mat so I purchased a bottle of Bordeaux to enjoy during the fireworks display.

I left the hostel at 8:30 and headed for the meeting point located on Ponte De L’Alma. I got to the meeting point at about 9:15 and settled on the center divide directly in the center of bridge. The bridge was filling up rapidly. The Fireworks started and the other two were no where to be found. Their dinner had ended too late at which point getting to me was a lost cause. The bridge was completely filled with people. It had a spectacular view of the Eiffel Tower and had an easy access point back to the metro. I end up enjoying the fireworks alone and didn’t get a chance to open the bottle of wine. I didn’t mind at all, because I really had no intentions of watching the fireworks with people but only to my self. Meeting other people along the way is just an added bonus. As far as the wine, I’ll drink it later on my trip.