Le défilé du 14-Juillet

Quatorze Juillet

2008

The many regiments line up an hour or two 

before the march down Avenue des Champs Elysées.

2013

In all, 4,800 troops marched in front of the presidential stage Sunday, 

along with 241 horses, 265 vehicles and 58 planes.

Bringing up the rear was an array of 35 helicopters, 

used in wartime and for civilian missions. 

Precision parachutists landed 

in front of the presidential stand to close the parade.

The military parade of 14-Juillet

Avenue des Champs Elysées

75008, Paris

 

Le Quatorze Juillet!

I remember thinking that so much of France's military equipment was being paraded down the Champs Élysée that we should hope there was no immediate need on the globe for assistance. The tanks, the humvees, the trucks, the so-large-I-cannot-imagine what they ares, the horses in finery, the planes, the firetrucks... all of the personnel. The length of this wide avenue was full to overflowing. It was magnificent!

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Today is a special day for me as I started my blog one year ago today. I drove to Birmingham to see Virginia, and the two of us "birthed this baby" so its birthday would always fall on Bastille Day. I will be forever grateful to her for her guidance and wonderful sense of humor as we laughed our way through "delivery."

Thanks to all of you who read my blog and who have, through your own blogs and comments on mine, enriched this experience, sharing a bit of your world with me. I was not sure that I could post 365 days in a row, but it is now just a part of me. Merci beaucoup!

Il est très sérieux

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!

Hail to the Chief!

The procession begins with President Sarkozy who stands tall (?) as he rides down the Champs-Élysées, la plus belle avenue du monde. Obviously, this year's weather does not match the blue skies of 2008 -- I stood alone making friends at the barricades for 4 hours to see the parade from Arc de Triomphe to Place de la Concorde. Quelle bonne fête nationale!