"It*s on, it*s off" -The Olympic Flame*s Chaotic Day in Paris.
0 Comments Published by Cedric Benetti on Tuesday, April 8, 2008 at 4/08/2008 12:34:00 AM.
"Ah, let the light of that olympic flame enlighten my spirit!"
Obviously everyone knows about the global protesting of the olympics in Beijing, so I won*t go into details on all things free-Tibet style. We know the story, now get the pictures.
I just got out of my last class at the Louvre, when I got a phonecall from my mom.
"Don*t go out into the streets, it*s dangerous outside with all those protesters, don*t get into trouble!"
Obviously I had to go check that one out a bit closer, and half an hour later my friend and me were waiting for that "Olympic spirit" to pass by on Place de la Concorde.
Activists had promised a day of "spectacular" protests despite the high-level security surrounding the torch, whose passage Sunday across London was disrupted several times by protestors. Paris police had vowed to secure a perimeter of some 200 metres around the flame.
The torchbearers were protected by a cordon of 65 motorcycle police, 100 jogging firemen, another 100 police on roller blades and nearly 50 vehicles with more than 200 riot police and almost a hundred cars, police busses, bikes and so on. A stunning array of security for such a ridiculously small thing as a burning flame.
And especially ridiculous if you keep in mind that we got a smoking ban in Paris now ;)Moments after the Olympic torch set off from the Eiffel Tower earlier, protests forced the organisers to extinguish the torch, and place the flame on the accompanying bus for safety.
The torchbearers were forced on and off the bus at least four times until organisers finally cut short the relay, skipping a planned ceremony at Paris city hall because the situation got out of control as some Paris city officials from the green party were waving pro-Tibet banners out of the windows.
Paris's Socialist mayor Bertrand Delanoe planned to unfurl a giant banner over city hall in defence of human rights.A large number of depuies at the National Assembly also interrupted their work and went onto the steps of the Assembly building, manifesting themselves with big Tibet banners as well.
well this was the opening sequence of anti-riot vans...
...followed by anti-riot officers on foot sealing off the perimeter
...the flame*s surrounding wall of security
and now we all RUN!
more security running... almost bumping into us...
ok now that*s it! let*s go home!
Oh some enthousiasts following the flame...
and making a final run to follow the spirit of the Olympics... or maybe they*re just anti-riot police fanatics...
Labels: celebrations, drunk politicians, Paris street stuff (NOT a TOILET), Sarkozyland
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