Crossed the Pont de la Tournelle and visited a riverside market showcasing produce from the South-West of France. People were out lunching on the side of the Seine, sitting on the stone walls, legs dangling, bottles of vin a-plenty.
Wandered back closer to home and visited an exposition of poster art by Michel Quarez, an artist who designs many of the posters used by cities in France to advertise their seasonal celebrations. The exhibition was at the Hotel de Sens, a medieval residence housing the Forney library which specialises in reference books on fine, decorative and graphic arts. Tres bon! We recognised M. Quarez's art from posters we have seen for summer in Paris this year and previous years.
Back home, rested and did some housework (yes, it even happens in Paris) and then headed off to Le Grand Rex, an art deco cinema complex, for a concert evening for the 10th anniversary celebration of Peace One Day.
Today is also the annual technoparade. I have been caught up by accident in this for the past two years and this year we were determined to avoid the crowd. Let me tell you, it's not just a crowd - picture Moomba, but it's certainly not a family affair. It all culminates with floats and procession arriving at Bastille after 5pm, and by then some of the party-goers have been partying since lunchtime...you can imagine the scene! For the best view of the arriving procession the Juillet column is apparently a good viewpoint!
We were happy to be heading away from the gathering crowd!
We were happy to be heading away from the gathering crowd!
Arrived at Le Grand Rex, picked up the tickets from the box office and enjoyed a drink at the bar across the road. The Rex is a slighty newer, much larger version of Melbourne's Palais Theatre. It has huge, comfortable seats and a decor that reminded me of the Forum.
The girl who showed us to our seats explained that the ushers are non-salaried students so they ask for a tip from patrons. Not sure if this was a ploy for tips from tourists or whether it was the real situation, but we supported the cause anyway.
The girl who showed us to our seats explained that the ushers are non-salaried students so they ask for a tip from patrons. Not sure if this was a ploy for tips from tourists or whether it was the real situation, but we supported the cause anyway.
We really enjoyed the night; videos from Jeremy Gillies, the founder of Peace One Day; spoken word by Saul Williams; video from Jude Law, ambassador for Peace One Day; performances by Kasabian, Ayo, Charlie Winston, Olivia Ruiz, Keziah Jones and Lenny Kravitz. It was fun to watch the French crowd and try to follow the presentations in French. It was no Festival Hall with plastic cups of beer; it was bottles of champagne and a very snappily dressed crowd! Tres swish!
We walked home at about midnight. Found rue Montorgueil on the way, a well-known market street we had been wanting to visit, still full of diners enjoying their Saturday night. Such a beautiful night for a walk! Arrived home, happy to find the Bastille rather less frantic than we left it.
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