New Years Eve in Paris
Dec 1st, 2000, 01:29 PM
#7
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Hi, <BR> <BR>My husband and I traveled to Paris for New Years 1998. We're all early to mid 30's. We, too, had planned to book into a dinner/dance kind of place for a fun party, but at the last minute decided against it - and were we ever glad! <BR> <BR>We were staying in the Latin Quarter, and just browsed around until we found a nice restaurant - then after dinner, we took a few bottles of champagne in a packsack and headed for the Champs Elysees. Normally, I find this area too touristy, and not very interesting. But on New Year's Eve, it's definitely the place to be. <BR> <BR>They close the streets, and thousands of people mill about the Champs, with crowds stretching from the Arc de Triomphe all the way to the Louvre. We had been told there were fireworks, but didn't realize, they meant EVERYBODY has fireworks. They're going off all around you. Everyone's happy and dancing, and sharing drinks. <BR> <BR>They ship in a bunch more police and National Guard, but they don't bother anyone. Their biggest job seemed to be protecting the gardens that line the Champs from being trampled, and keeping people from leaving the street to pee near the trees. They don't bother the revelers at all. <BR> <BR>At midnight - after the requisite cheering and kissing, everyone moves to the mid-point - Le Rond Pointe -- and throws their champagne bottles into the roundabout. <BR> <BR>This is a night when the sometimes frosty Parisians open up, and we struck up some great conversations with locals that night! <BR> <BR>Best of all - it didn't cost us upward of $150 each. But we had a blast. Don't forget to ride the giant ferris wheel at the entrance to the Tuileries and toast the New Year at the top!
