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Summer Postcards 2011

Bastille Day

By Joshua L. Wang

- Tricolor banners fly on le quatorze juillet (July 14th) in La Place de la Comédie in Montpellier, where a crowd has gathered to celebrate La Fête Nationale, or Bastille Day. The day commemorates the storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789, and the symbolic beginning of the modern nation of France. By Joshua L. Wang

- Distinguished military and civil leaders bear the French flag and that of the French Foreign Legion during the Bastille Day ceremonies. By Joshua L. Wang

- Spectators eagerly await the procession of the French Foreign Legion during the parade. By Joshua L. Wang

- Members of the French Foreign Legion march with practiced poise through La Place de la Comédie. Their pace is markedly slower than other French units. Because of this they are always the last unit marching in any parade. By Joshua L. Wang

- A man approaches the Porte du Peyrou, a triumphal arch completed in 1693. By Joshua L. Wang

- Spectators look on as the public celebration concludes with an impressive show of fireworks that lights up the night sky. By Joshua L. Wang

On July 14 in Montpellier, as throughout all of France, there is cause for celebration. La Fete Nationale, or French National Day, is celebrated in grand fashion with parades, formal military dress, fireworks, flags, and—of course—large crowds.

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