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The fact is, Parisians had been promised chaos: as soon as construction work was completed, the city was set to be swarming with tourists and almost impassable due to overcrowded public transport, restricted traffic zones, rising prices and security risks.
Some had decided to flee the capital and where possible, rent out their apartments at full price. But this summer, many of them kicked themselves for doing so. They witnessed, from a distance, a completely different reality experienced by those who believed in the Games from the start. Those whose voices were muffled by the evil prophecies of the Cassandras and the “hard to please”, as the exasperated Mayor of Paris described them two months prior to the event.
After the stupefaction of the grandiose opening ceremony, a sublimated capital was offered to the public of the Games. In an instant, all doubts were dispelled: a beach had been set up at the foot of the Eiffel Tower to host beach volleyball, the spectacular glass roof of the Grand Palais was now home to fencing duels, the so-called “new” urban sports rubbed shoulders with the Concorde obelisk, the oldest monument in Paris… totally “Instagrammable”. What better campaign for tourism!
Forget the traffic jams, forget the rats, forget the degraded streets: even under overcast skies, Parisians found themselves loving Paris again, and even enjoying the company of tourists. Where they weren’t fortunate enough to attend events, they took their children to enjoy the festivities at the town hall forecourt, celebrated their champions at Club France, and communed late into the night around the Olympic cauldron. A fever that spread all the way to Belleville, a neighborhood in eastern Paris where bohemians and working-class families mingled, proud to see top-level cyclists ride through their often-neglected streets.
For once, Parisians weren’t desperate to watch photos of their friends on holiday at the seaside on social media. Perhaps their roles were even reversed. Olympic values blew a wind of peace through the country. The political truce called for by President Macron was accepted, albeit reluctantly, by the left-wing opposition, which is looking forward to the appointment of a new Prime Minister. With its eyes riveted on the French medal count, Paris is still enjoying the last bits of festivities without a thought for tomorrow.
The foreign press has been amused by this state of grace affecting the capital. Some will say that this enchanted interlude is not the real Paris, and they’re probably right, but these Games will at least have left a legacy of reconciliation between Parisians, their city and its visitors. Let’s hope it lasts!