Tuesday, September 13, 2011

9/11 Remembrance: Vive la France!

Keeping Up with Jones has a heart-warming report on the French ceremonies related to 9/11:

The Palais de Chaillot was built for the 1937 Exposition Universelle and currently houses two museums, the Musée de la Marine in the west wing, and the Cité de l'Architecture in the east wing. Atop both of these buildings one normally sees a large tri-color French flag. This past Sunday, on September 11th, things were different. Above the Cité de l'Architecture, flapping in a stiff wind, were the stars and stripes of Old Glory, a small part of an impressive French commemoration of the tenth anniversary of 9/11. Down below, on the Place du Tracadéro a stage was set up, flanked by two towers symbolizing the World Trade Center. The message on the banners draped from the towers was simple, and in both English and in French: "The French Will Never Forget" and "Les Français n'oublieront jamais". The program for the day included a children's choir singing songs, French high schoolers reading letters of condolence from other students, a live report from a French CNN correspondent in Kabul, and the presentation of a medal to a NYFD firefighter by the US ambassador to France.

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