Eiffel Tower Illumination & Strobes
Precisely on the hour each evening after nightfall,
the illuminated Eiffel
Tower sparkles with
thousands of strobe lights. The show goes on
for the first 10 minutes after the hour. The
prime observation point is the terrace of the
Palais de Chaillot, just across the Seine,
but in fact you can enjoy the sparkles from
anywhere within the city with a view of the
tower.
Palais de Chaillot Plaza
You come here in the evening to enjoy
the sparkling lights on the Eiffel Tower, but
you also see hordes of skateboarders, couples
in love, kids sliding down the bannisters and
railings, street performers...the entire panoply
of Paris street life.
Pont des Arts
Every evening when it's warm enough
to linger outside the pedestrian-only Pont
des Arts is alive with groups of young
people picnicking, singing, dancing, enjoying
the evening air. Buskers and street performers
look for willing audiences, a few hawkers look
for customers, and everyone partakes of the
mellow atmosphere.
Walks along the Seine
You've walked along the Seine at street level,
but have you descended to the walkways right
along the river? Lots of people do. They stroll,
they sit, they smooch, they watch the brightly-lit
river cruise boats pass and repass, and they
enjoy the moment—incomparable—of being by the
Seine in Paris on a lovely evening.
Free Concerts
You may be amazed at how much free music
there is to be enjoyed in Paris at night. The
city government sponsors many free concerts
in the city parks—popular music, jazz, folk,
classical, gospel, whatever. Many churches
offer free organ recitals and other musical
offerings. Look at posters on streets and doors,
browse Pariscope, the
entertainment weekly available at newsstands,
and you'll find more than enough free performances
to fill a week.
Street Performers
Try this: stroll around Paris at night,
crossing and re-crossing the Seine on its bridges,
and you will be astonished at the number of
street performers you will
encounter. Musicians, poets, circus artists,
mimes—they ply their arts on the bridges, those
causeways through which the entire population
of Paris must pass. If you donate, I suppose
it's not free. But then, if you donate, I guess
you got your money's worth.
