Postcard from Paris

Last week's visit to Paris coincided with Bastille Day, France's most important national holiday. 'Le 14 juillet' is celebrated throughout the country with dinners, dances and fireworks in the evenings, and in Paris, a magnificent military parade on the Champs-Élysées takes place in the morning.

Visiting Paris on Bastille Day is a special and memorable event, even if you don't join the crowds along the Champs-Élysées and around the Eiffel tower. The atmosphere is magical, particularly until lunchtime, where in large parts of town the traffic is completely stopped.  A usually bustling city wrapped in silence feels almost unworldly, and is further heightened in places where a lot of people are gathered.. even large crowds can't replicate the sound level that traffic produces.

When we stepped out of our hotel in the morning, the only sign of the parade (which took place a few miles away, across the river Seine) was the fly past of the French Air Force, roaring in the sky and reflecting in the windows of Saint-Germain's town houses. We walked through quiet and empty boulevards and streets to a nearby café.. no traffic noises, no cars, and very few people. Just as we were about to cross the road to have our coffee,

 

the eerie silence was suddenly broken by marching feet and military songs. To everyone's astonishment a French Foreign Legion Corps came marching and singing down the street, 

followed by troops of the French Army and Navy, armored vehicles and tanks. With only a handful of people around to watch, this was one of the most memorable parades I ever saw (note to email subscribers: if you can't see the video, please click here)

The events on the Champs-Élysées finished around noon, and afterwards the streets were filled with cadets, soldiers, legionnaires and officers who met up with their families, friends or girlfriends.

Many went on to have lunch in the nearby cafés and restaurants (below: Francois Felix in the Rue Boissy d'Anglas)

 

Capsule wardrobe # 138

Capsule wardrobe pieces: red jeans, white tank top and dark blue blazer 

Accessories: Hermès 'Fantaisies Indiennes' Mousseline GM, chaine d'ancre printed enamel bracelet, Muse belt buckle with rouge garrance belt strap and Bolide in Bleu de Prusse
Shoes: blue patent leather pumps Marlène by Roger Vivier)
Scarf tying method: as in previous post

Scarf ring: Shawl ring in black horn

Le Saint-Germain: 62 rue du Bac, 75007 Paris, Tel + 33 1 45 48 99 69

Bistrot François Felix: 9, Rue Boissy d'Anglas, 75008 Paris, Tel +33 1 42 65 04 08

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