Friday night at the Firemen's Ball - Bastille Day in Paris


It rained, it poured - but the torrential downpour didn't dampen the spirits of the revelers at the Firemen's Ball in the 15th arrondissement last night. After passing through security and depositing a donation in the traditional wooden barrel, Stéphane and I entered a large courtyard and were pleased to see that there was a good turnout in spite of the lousy weather.


Young women hoping to catch the attention of the well-built firemen were out in droves, or perhaps they were waiting for the stage show to start. Rumor has it that some of the firemen actually start more fires than they put out by going Full Monty at these annual fundraisers. Unfortunately, Stéphane wasn't in the mood to hang around until 4:00 am for me to get photographic evidence. But there were lots of firemen serving drinks at the champagne bars and grilling hotdogs at the food tent. 


If the bad weather kept you inside last night, it's not too late to go to one of the many traditional dances hosted by the Brigade of Firemen of Paris (BSPP) on Bastille Day. Hopefully, you'll be able to leave your umbrella at home. Click here to see the list of stations hosting festivities. I wonder why the firemen in the 16th arrondissement don't join in the fun!

Did Stéphane and I dance? Nope! He was busy holding the umbrella while I took lots of photos. Rather than ruin the evening, the rain created some interesting effects.



Comments

  1. Oh man! We almost went to the same Fireman's Ball but the rain kept us away. Your pics turned out great, but I'm sure glad we decided to stay in and stay dry!

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    1. You made a wise decision, although it would have been fun to bump into you on the dance floor! Stephane and I were already drenched because we walked to the fire station from a restaurant near the Eiffel Tower. After a certain point, we just gave up on trying to stay dry.

      Happy fête nationale!

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  2. Love the rain falling through the lights. Where are the sexy firemen?

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    1. I took a couple of photos of the firemen but they didn't turn out that well. Sorry! Plus, I didn't want to go all stalkerish on them since Stephane was kindly holding the umbrella over my head!

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  3. I also like the rain effects. Clever!

    Hope nobody had a fire last night!! And no cats got stick up trees hiding from the fireworks.

    Love Denise

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    1. Denise, that's a funny comment.

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    2. Ha! I had the same thought, Denise. Maybe they were counting on the rain to put out any fires. As for cats stuck in trees, let's hope that they were smart enough to stay inside Friday night.

      When we saw the military parade on the CE yesterday morning, Stephane joked that the firemen's brigade was looking rather ragged!

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  4. I think I'll suggest to our firemen in Boussac that they have a ball like yours. Sounds brilliant!

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    1. Don't they host one? I thought that it was a national tradition.

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  5. Very pretty photos! This looks like a good time, even in the rain.

    When I was Paris last year on a walk with a greeter, he said that a fire broke out at the Firemen's Ball the year before. No one was hurt, but what a way to end the party. Glad to see this one went off without a hitch.

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