Bastille Day Fireworks in Paris

At the last minute I decided to go to the fireworks for Bastille Day. I didn't want to go because I knew it was going to be packed but seeing I hadn't been before I thought I should at least once. I got the metro to Ecole Militaire which was a good station to get off. The Champs de Mars is only a short walk from there and even though it was full of people, who had seemingly been there most of the day, I still found a spot fairly close to the Eiffel Tower.

I got there at 9pm but the fireworks didn't start until 10:30pm. I had to stand during that time which wouldn't have been so bad if there wasn't a million other people around. People kept pushing to get a better view but once things started it was fine. I was surprisingly close to the action as the fireworks went off between the Champs de Mars and the Tour Eiffel. I'm sure the view I had was better than that from any other vantage point. If you want to see the fireworks and don't mind being people breathing down your neck then that is the place to be.

As for the fireworks themselves - they were great. I haven't seen any fireworks displays for quite a few years so I don't know how they compare but I was really impressed. They went off in time to classical music which was fantastic. I'm used to seeing fireworks in Australia for Australia Day and that is always to Australian music so this was quite different. I like classical music and this was perfect, especially with the Eiffel Tower in the background.

Naturally there was a huge number of people trying to get into the one metro station when I was leaving but after a little pushing and shoving I was inside. Once inside there were hardly any people and it was a quiet ride home.

It's hard to say if I would go again because I can't stand crowds but I think ultimately it was worth it. I won't go every year but now and again would be fine. They really were beautiful, better then any fireworks I have every seen. As the guy next to me said, 'belissimo'.