Paris-sur-Seine

Back in Paris! Jet-lagged, so up at weird hours. That ill-advised Coke I had today didn't help either... I thought the caffeine would help, but as always, it just made things more complicated.

I wanted to share with you some night photos of Paris-plages (it's plural, who knew?), the beach and boardwalk (sans boards) that the city sets up for a month in summer. There's actually not a lot of sand, but it's wonderful to promenade there, in place of the cars that normally own the real estate right by the river. I love festive collections of people, especially those where people can enjoy whatever activity they like: here, for example, there are cafés, sand to sit on, picnic tables, fountains to stand under if it's hot, concerts, pétanque (bocce) courts...

I was delighted to have dinner right on the Seine. That's the spire of Notre Dame on the other side of the river, and if you look closely you can see the square bits behind the row houses:



It's so magical to be at almost the water level and look at the bridges all lit up.



Ok, one more photo (there are a few more up in the usual place). This one shows the Eiffel Tower flashing, as it does for the ten minutes at the top of every hour in the evening, next to a palm tree imported for the occasion.