One more photo before we leave le quatorze juillet -- There was a whole batallion of these guys with big guns, some with bayonets. I have never seen so many tanks, trucks, and weapons in a row, ever! The uniforms range from the simple as seen here to the elaborate. This guy was the only serious one in the crowd waiting for the parade to begin. Maybe he was Big Cheese's lookout.
From what I saw, every soldier, sailor, wheeled vehicle, horse, weapon (tout) that is part of the French military was there on Champs Élysées. The crowd was well behaved -- bien sûr, with all of that weaponry present!
20 comments:
Bonjour, Genie, and welcome to the growing list of southern francophiles. If we don't cross paths in the Mobile/Pensacola area, perhaps we'll do so in Paris! I hope you'll visit my "Paris & Beyond" at PollysParis.blogspot.com
..greatly enjoyed this offering, V. Great humour and observation in the series. Bless Sarko's little cotton socks! You caught him as he wants to be known - tall and not short and perfect in every detail.
I'm laughing at Chuckeroon's comment. "Not short and perfect in every detail!" That's great. Yes, the French love them some heay artillery to be sure. Since they never seem to use it any other time, maybe that's why they like to play with it on special occasions! :)
Your header is great!
Can't wait to see the next "theme" perhaps some colorful baked goods are in the hopper? TGIF
Qte Since they never seem to use it any other time endqte
er...36,000 troops in overseas operations? (Afghanistan, Cote d'Ivoire, UN peacekeeping)
Off to a wonderful start! Looking forward to many more Paris moments. Bon chance!
Love your new banner!!!
Regardez bien sa main et ses doigts...
Je suis ( allez ) quasiment sûr et certain qu'il meurt d'envie de tendre le majeur en signe de joie...:)
Polly -- I cannot believe that you are so close but I think that you are where I would love to be right now.... Paris! I sent you a message. Merci
'roon -- Do you think he wears white socks with little fleur-de-lis on them?
Mad -- I will be leaving the heavy artilery tomorrow -- perhaps we will see les macarons soon! Miam miam!
jb -- I was amazed at the variety and quantity of what I saw that day and wondered how there could possibly be anything "in the field" left! I had never seen anything like the "white tanks" and the enormous rolling gas stations. Very impressive.
Quilt Art -- Thank you for stopping in and encouraging my new blog! Merci
Harriet -- I did not have to do anything but be in the right place at the right time -- just "click" to capture that special moment of the sun. Wish I was there right now!
jeff -- Peut-être, mais avec l'arme à feu dans le bras je pense qu'il l'a déjà tendu en signe de joie
I love your 'title' picture.
Starman -- It was taken from Pont des Arts as I waited for the ex-pat gathering on a summer evening avec une bouteille de vin. The light was parfait!
This is a great portrait!
JB.
Big whoop! :)
WHITE TANKS?? See? I rest my case. Who has white tanks. They probably have a little Chanel logo on the sides! HA
I love your banner photo, too. It's unbelievable!
I have not seen a parade in France for a long time but it is true there are always many regiments in it as in parades in many other countries. They do deploy them overseas though, of course they do not have 763 bases in other peoples’ countries like the US does, but they partner with the US on various operations. Just one example: I just read that a French troop’s body was found on 12th July in the Caribbean. There are more than 7,600 French troops in the Caribbean area partnering with the US in the Joint Inter Agency Task Force to counter drug trafficking. Of course this does not make the US news - where making fun of the French military is a national pastime.
Suzy -- There's a lot of activity on the Seine -- Merci beaucoup
Vagabond -- Until I saw the parade, and the line-up that preceded it, I did not have any idea that the French military was so varied. Travel has a way of opening our eyes, n'est-ce pas?
He was probably one of those little boys who loved to play with toy guns—and now that they've let him have a real one, he's just hoping someone gives him a chance to use it. Doesn't he look like he's thinking, "Go ahead—make my day!"
Yes, I agree with VJ, the light and the angle of the header are great. When I was last in Paris (Sept 2008) there was a bunch of armed blokes under the Eiffel Tower but also dressed in fatigues.
Alexa -- I would love to know his thoughts at that moment. There is a lot of stress in his hand with veins showing.
Julie -- A couple of weeks ago during la Coupe du Monde I saw many gendarmes as we came out of M. Trocadero to Palais de Chaillot.
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