Notes for the New Year: Paris Warms Up for Summer Olympics

...plus, David Bowie gets a Parisian street, and the "France made me cry" vid that went viral

Dear Subscribers,

It may be almost mid-January, but I feel no shame in wishing you all a joyful, fulfilling new year nonetheless. It’s customary in France for people to do so throughout the month, which somewhat takes the pressure off having to send dozens, if not hundreds, of messages in the first 24 hours of the year. Who made up that convention, anyway?

As we enter 2024, I’m looking forward to what’s widely expected to be a thrilling, if chaotic, year for the French capital. All eyes and minds are now set on the 2024 Summer Olympics, now just months away and set to transform Paris into, well, an even-more-crowded-than-usual, intoxicating, claustrophobic center of world attention.

Plans are finally firming up for the much-buzzed-about opening ceremonies. City officials recently confirmed that they will indeed largely take place on the waterways and quays of the Seine river, with no “plan B” or C in place despite widespread security concerns (and consternation from the city’s beloved bouquiniste booksellers, whose traditional green stands will have to be temporarily dismantled).