This weekend is the beginning of the ponts, or bridges-- it means the three- or four-day weekends that come all through the month of May and empty out the city. I was in a hurry to do an errand and took the car. Bad idea, there was a big traffic jam along the quai and a cordon rouge policeman-- the ones who literally wear a red cordon around their shoulders (above) to escort and protect VIPs around Paris-- had blocked off the entry to the voies sur berges, the fast express roads along the river.
As I inched my way, red light after red light, past the policeman, who looked bored, a motorcyclist came and talked to him and he opened up the barrier and let him through. Just as I went too far to go back, the policeman opened up the barrier and all the cars behind me poured through, zooming past us. How annoying!
When I went by the Elysées palace, where the President of France lives with a huge garden off the Champs-Elysées, there were more cordon rouge policemen. Mahmoud Abbas, the beleaguered president of the Palestinian authority, is in town, so it was probably for him.
He picked a bad time to come, though. Chirac and Villepin are in big trouble! As of this afternoon, it looks very much as if they ordered the French secret service to spy on their rival Nicolas Sarkozy, possibly leak false allegations that he has an offshore bank account, and generally make him and various other political rivals look bad. Oh là là!
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Completely out of the blue, so to speak, I saw in the middle of Paris, standing on a street corner comme si de rien n'était, a tall jet-black Tuareg in full blue desert costume, complete with blue veil across his face and piercing eyes. He looked wonderful.
*Photos from Global Eye, leyeti at flickr, beatm at flickr, and kaffee-tips.de
So, because of ponts, does that make Paris in May a good or bad time to visit?
From Sedulia: Well, it's fine once you're here (except that everything will be closed on Monday May 1st, Monday May 8th, and sometimes Thursday May 25th. it's just that everyone who can leaves Paris on the weekends so it is hard to get travel reservations then or see friends who live in Paris.
Posted by: Neil | 29 April 2006 at 00:07