We saw the Tour de France!! We knew there would be enormous crowds, and were warned we wouldn't see anything, so were tempted to watch instead from our local bridge, since the Tour was entering Paris right by our hotel, but we decided that it was worth the risk to trek into town and brave the crowds to be part of the final laps, and are very glad we did:) Many people were staking out their spots from 8am (the riders arrived at 4.30), but we got to the bottom of the Champs Elysee just after 1pm, and got a pretty good spot 3 back from the rails, so could see between people in front. And we only had 3 hours standing in the sun!
One of the best parts of the day is the publicity caravan - something you don't get to see on TV. This is a parade of over 200 vehicles (floats, trucks etc) of the Tour sponsors, usually giving out freebies along the route (but not when they get to Paris). They drive along the Champs Elysee, zig-zagging from side to side, all playing loud music or sounding horns or alarms, and with people waving out every window and strapped to the roof etc - even the gendarmes!! It took over 45 minutes to pass, doing their lap of the Champs Elysee, so really helped to create a fun atmosphere (and list of noise).
Huge numbers of British people here to see their first ever Tour winner, with the bonus of another Brit winning today's stage - apparently thousands came over on the Eurostar last night and are returning tonight, so we can just imagine the party on the train tonight. We celebrated Wiggins' win with takeaway Grand Marnier crepes in the park:)
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