the Parisian masses in front of Notre Dame
Random psuedo-marching band on a side street in the Latin Quarter.
La Coupe du Monde, aka the World Cup (soccer), screening in front of, duh, la Tour Eiffel.So a little culture today:
Part I
La Fete de la Musique is an annual, nationwide celebration of music which started in 1982. It happens in other places around the world too, but it is definitely a huge affair in France. Amateur and professional bands and singers perform all over in different venues as well as just right in the street. Several metro lines even stay open 24 hours (they usually close at midnight on weekdays). A bunch of us walked around to experience the madness--music on every street corner and Parisians and tourists flooding the streets. A unique way to spend the first day of summer!
Part II of this post must be dedicated to Europe's (mulit)national pastime: football, or as we have strangely dubbed it, soccer. Now in the midst of the World Cup, depsite the fact that I, like many Americans, couldn't care less about this sport, also cannot avoid it in a country consumed by the action. Unfortunately for les Francais however, les Bleus (the French team) hasn't played well for a few years now, and to really turn the knife, the US is actually playing really well, qualifying on Wednesday night in a 1-0 match against Algeria! Qualifying for what exactly, don't ask me--like I said, I couldn't care less. Nonetheless, it's hard to avoid the general excitement, so GO USA!!
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