Fête de la Musique - Fun & All night

[menton1]

Saturday night is the Fete de la Musique in Paris, the annual celebration of the start of summer. Last year I was lucky enough to be in Paris at this time. A wonderful feast.

On just about every corner in the city were some musicians playing, surrounded by hordes of people. They also have big venue events, like at the Hotel de Ville and at the Tour Eiffel. Boulevard St Germain had a procession of artists from 10PM until well into the night. The only folks who are unhappy are those in cars, who just cannot get through the streets because of the throngs of humanity!!

Can anyone lucky enough to be there this year kindly give us a report of the festivities... I will have to live vicariously through that this year!! Bonne fete!!

[Louisa Chu]

They're also lighting the tower tonight at 11PM! Menton, just for you I'll brave the crowds!

[Louisa Chu]

Actually, they lit the new glittering lights around 11:20PM - about an hour half ago. Uh oh, my sister's watching the live coverage on TV and she says they're doing the Macarena - we got in just in time!

We walked out about 10:45PM - with plastic cups of chilled rose wine in hand - and just followed the music. We stepped out of our building onto rue de Grenelle and walked towards the Champ de Mars - which we can see from our balcony just three streets over. We exhanged greetings with our favourite neighborhood cafe couple - they have the handsomest Shepherd/Husky mix named Doogie. They were open exceptionally late - all the tiny round sidewalk tables filled, people drinking everything from beers to those bright green mint-syrup flavoured drinks they favour here.

At the corner, down rue Augereau, a crowd blocked the road so we headed over. A band was playing at the mouth of the little L-shaped, cobblestoned rue du Gros Caillou - reggae as we walked up. The orange-awning-ed Cafe de Champ de Mars had set up a table as a temporary bar, selling bottled water and beer.

We worked our way up to rue St. Dominique and turned towards the Tower. Passing Le Dome - not THE Le Dome, just a cafe - I saw an old man, wearing a suit and hat, carefully walking, while eating a supersized serving of frites, covered in mustard. The cafe was also taking advantage of the crowds with a long outdoor table selling those frites - 4 euros! - drinks and baguette sandwiches.

We started towards the Tower again, but someone set off fireworks and Karli - uncharacteristically in harness and on leash - pulled us to what she considered the safety of the entrance to her vet's office on Bourdonnais.

We managed to coax her into the park once we reached our street again. Just before the dusty side path, an enterprising family sold sausages and meat and onion kebabs right off the grill - on baguettes as sandwiches - and again those cold drinks.

The bike path was actually not packed and the center lawn while full had a few open patches. We found a spot on the lawn right in front of the Peace Memorial - front right corner, facing the Tower - where we normally have evening dog play group.

The Rolling Stones-sized stage set up at the front of the next lawn has been the setting all day - or at least the few times I ventured over - to an unfortunate assortment of Euro disco bands. Sadly this act was no exception.

Just before 11:20PM, the band mercifully stopped and the gold Tower lights went dark, from the base up, in three phases. They were supposed to stay off for 10 minutes - for suspense - so we watched while Karli played with a Pug and Jack Russell. But seconds later, at the collective gasp of the crowd, we looked up just in time as a flutter of lights went up the Tower - and the glittering ones went on. We'd almost missed it.

These lights are so much better than those that went up for the Millennium! The previous lights had an unnerving quality while these - though also bright - glitter, twinkle, and sparkle.

OK, drunken, shouting idiots passing under my window. I'm contemplating water balloons. Damn - no balloons. Still shouting. Considering water.

We made a pass through the park - relatively, surprisingly clean - and headed over to Cafe Roussillon on Grenelle at Rue Cler - another official site of the Fete. People dancing in the street to music but no live band.

Down Rue Cler, a ghost town except for the crepe stand at Cafe du Marche - which Marion Cunningham once said was one of her two best meals one a particular trip, the other at Taillevent.

Around La Motte Picquet, where at the corner, the crowd poured down into the Metro at Ecole Militaire.

And around again up Bosquet, where at Malone's we actually found music we liked - kind of an acid jazz thing. Joined the throng for a bit then headed home.

Crowds gone. Just a few stragglers left. But my downstairs neighbors' are having a party - warning note posted next to the elevator this morning - and they're actually blasting disco. Why can't neighbors' music ever be good?

Edited June 21, 2003 by loufood (log)

[menton1]

Loufood, thanks so much for this comprehensive report!! I felt like I was there!!

I will be in Paris in the middle of September, hope the "chaleur" is over by then, our hotel has no air conditioning. I saw on the French News (France-2) that the homes for the elderly, especially in the South, have no a/c, and the seniors are not doing well in the heat wave. We were in France in June 2002 and also experienced 4 days of a tremendous heat wave, without a/c where we stayed.

Bisous to Karli!! (Is that her in the avatar?)

[fresh_a]

I used to live at Square Robiac, just off of the rue de Grenelle, and fondly remember the creperie next to the Cafe de Marche...they are excellent...

[Louisa Chu]

menton, you're so welcome! Let me know when you're coming to town! And I must say the weather's gorgeous in my neighborhood - heat and all - the parks and river really cool it off. And the warm summer nights are insanely romantic. And merci from Karli - yes, that's my girl.

fresh_a, I live right across Bosquet! What's in Square de Robiac? Is there a school? I always mean to check it out but am concerned about cornering an unsuspecting kitty. Yes, those crepes - they drive me crazy.

[menton1]

Would be happy to hear a first-hand report about this year's Fête de la Musique, that great street party that marks the start of the summer solstice in Paris. I was there in person in 2002, and it was quite grand, with almost every corner featuring its own musicians and artists, well into the night.

Since I'm now "languishing" back in the States, could anyone provide some details so that I can vicariously enjoy this great festival! Thanks!

[barbaluc]

In our very small village, Cabrieres d'Avignon, we had an evening in the 'place 'with several performers of all ages, and talents. Most of the village stopped by at some point, and it was the typique (as a Canadian observer) evening of small children staying up well past their bedtime and running around madly while their parents enjoyed the fete. Today's local paper, La Provence, reported on all the local events and a grand listing of all the upcoming events, as yesterday marked only the beginning of these evenings.

[bleudauvergne]

Last year we had a house guest and walked until our feet had blisters. We began the evening listening to jazz at a cafe, and then saw everything from string quartets outside the firehouse, cuban music at place Guichard, to the most amazing white girls doing african dancing to live drums on the ponts de la croix rousse, to a carnival atmosphere that included a Santana-esque band outside the mayor of the 4eme. I recall that someone was playing a free form abstract electric guitar and flashing random photo slides of body parts out his window, and we stopped and stared at that for a long time.

This year we were rather civilized and only went to a chamber music concert. But we heard the festivities all night long from home. I found out that we live in the punk rock neighborhood. There was lots of anguished screaming to garage bands, it was refreshing. I snuck a picture at the concert.

Too civilized.

Food: