Have to admit that we didn't get off to a very auspicious start. I managed to squeeze onto the metro, but David did not. For those of you who haven't ridden the metro, here's a picture I took of the metro station while I was waiting for David to arrive:
When we connected, we wandered up and down the streets taking in the many, many booths in the braderie. There was everything from regular merchants' clearance sales to people selling "Turnip Twaddlers" (for those Far Side cartoon fans) - "it slices, it dices, etc. etc." We actually got a couple of Christmas gifts, including a cute jumper for our granddaughter, Vesper. Then it was time to sit back and have a carafe du vin. Here's a picture I took of David in an increasingly typical pose:
Then we got a real treat - a parade celebrating the "Republique des Canuts."
Time for a quick bit of explanation. The Canuts were silk workers. They had a definite "radical" contingent and have been described as being a first organized labor unit. The Canuts actually had four distinct rebellions, the first was in 1831 in protest of their 18 hour days and working conditions. Their battle cry was, "Vivre libre en travaillant ou mourir en combattant !" (Live free working or die fighting.) King Louis-Philippe I sent 20,000 men and 150 cannon which pretty much ended that. The last was in 1849, echoing the uprising of the Parisian Republicans, and was no more successful than the previous ones. Times moved on, manufacturing methods changed, and the invention of "artificial silk" brought an end to the Canuts. The current organization of "Republique des Canuts" was founded in 1986 to keep the memory of Canuts alive.
Back to the parade… There were Canut dignitaries in red aprons, others in official-looking robes, a grand marching band, a horse-drawn wagon with more Canut celebrants, and lots of others marching along behind. Many of those last folk carried baskets with scissors and wore aprons. Quite the celebration! We decided to show solidarity and join the parade and walked along with them until they reached their destination, a park with a huge banner proclaiming their republic. They finished off with speakers, traditional food, and, I'm sure, more music. We decided it was time to head home to our apartment and didn't stay around. But, here are some pix taken of the parade:
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