I’m well aware of the horrific terrorist attacks around the world including Kenya, Nigeria, Beirut, Bangladesh (bloggers being murdered for not being Muslim enough) and many more. If I wrote about every attack around the world, Displaced Beachbums would cease to be about travel. But Paris and all of France has a special place in my heart.
As an American, the French are our oldest ally ~ beginning with Lafayette and the help of the French during our revolution. I’ve been fortunate enough to visit many times and also know someone who lives in central Paris. It’s personal to me. The French inspire me with their love of life, the physical beauty of their country, their history, their delicious wine, desserts and even their “confident” attitude.
My biggest fear is we will let Daesh (and other fanatics) change the way we live. When I say I’m “Praying for Paris”, I’m praying not only for those affected by the recent attack, but for the defeat of the darkness which has been allowed to permeate around the world.
Recently I’ve been attempting to reorganize the thousands of photos I’ve taken over the last ten years. In light of what’s happening in Paris, I made a quick visit to the French Embassy in DC yesterday and then decided I would concentrate on my France photos. Below are a few photos of my visits to Paris:
and then here’s a real throwback to 2004…
Thank you for this tribute to Paris. It means a lot to those of us who live here to feel the international support, and to know our city has become a symbol against the horrors perpetrated by Daesh worldwide.
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Thank you for commenting. I hope you are doing as well as can be expected during these very difficult times for Paris (and the world). Stay safe and know you’ve got massive support from this side of the Atlantic.
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Wonderful photos, Patti, of a city I love so well, forever changed by the horrific and unfathomable events of last Friday. I am glad to hear your friends are safe.
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Hi Stacy ~ thanks for your kind words. Hope you’re doing well. I’m hoping for a blogger meet-up soon!
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That would be fun, Patti 🙂 Let’s put this on our must-do list for the new year!
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Thanks for the post, Patti. Very well said, and your pictures brought back fond memories of our visits there. I drove by the French Embassy yesterday and saw the enormous bank of flowers and symbols of solidarity.We’ll be heading back to Paris for a brief visit next year.
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How exciting you’ll be heading to Paris next year. I keep wanting to go back there while our friend is still there but airfare has been so high. Will keep checking for discounts. On another note: I haven’t seen any events at the Institute of Peace but will be attending a Brookings Institute event tomorrow featuring a panel of experts. The event is titled: Paris and Europe after the Terrorist Attacks. Should be interesting..
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Patti, your words captured what many feel. Tragedy and evil occur everywhere, but when you have such a personal connection, it makes it even worse and much harder to bear.
I’d not heard the term daesh until reading this. Thanks
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Thank you for your kind words.
I prefer to use the acronym daesh instead of Islamic state because I feel they don’t represent Islam and are not a state. I realize the acronym is saying the same thing but in arabic (al-Dawla al-Islamiya fi al-Iraq wa al-Sham) but since Daesh members HATE the term and those oppressed by them like it, that’s the one I’ll use. Although, in private when speaking with my husband (and my daughter isn’t around), I prefer to use the John Oliver term.
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Beautiful photos, Patty. Thanks for writing about this.
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Lovely photos of a lovely city. I wish I knew how these hateful fanatics could be stopped.
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Thank you. Sadly, Daesh (and other fanatics) seems to be everywhere. Time for all of us to become much more educated on what is going on all around the world and what we as individuals can do.
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I couldn’t agree with this more, Paris is such a beautiful city, I visited for the first time last year with my friends and I was so happy there and we all felt so safe. England and France have a slightly different history, I think we have fought more than we have got along, as any people who have been so closely tied together for so long would do, but in this we will stand together
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Thank you for your comment. I’m glad you had a chance to experience Paris. I’ve been trying to get back there since my visit in 2013. It’s one of those cities that takes many visits to appreciate.
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Thanks for your post. I has been very personal for us as well as we lived in the area where the main attacks happened for 2 1/2 years. We were quite relieved to hear back from all of our friends that they were safe though obviously quite shaken. (Suzanne)
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I’m so relieved your friends are safe. I too breathed a sigh of relief when I heard from our friend who lives there as well as a couple who just arrived in Paris for an event on the 12th. I’m shaken just by watching those familiar places being attacked. Can’t imagine the trauma for those there…
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A very sad day for Paris and the world….may evil be diminished!
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Completely agree. I hope world leaders will work together to thwart any additional attacks no matter where in the world daesh might want to strike.
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