Napoleon at the Carousel du Louvre

So here we are in Paris, figuring out what to see and do each day, and a tip arrives in an email from Barbara back in California -- the 150th anniversary of Waterloo is upon us, and Friday March 20, Napoleon will be arriving at the Carousel du Louvre to commemorate it. 

Never mind that no French friends had heard about it, and when we mentioned it they all grimaced and said that Waterloo was a disaster, and who would want to commemorate it? 

We went anyway. 

When we arrived there was no sign of any unusual activity.  There were a few tourists, but they seemed oblivious to anything about to happen.  But there were quite  few professional photographers, some with stepping stools and most with big lenses.  We asked one and he confirmed that Napoleon was indeed on his way from behind the Louvre, to be met by a contingent of soldiers arriving from the Tuileries gardens.  We found a bench and waited. 

After a half hour or so, a flatbed truck arrived with a wagon, which on closer inspection proved to be a cook wagon, complete with two huge cauldrons. 

Then an ambulance arrived on a flatbed truck. 

After a few more minutes a few folks in costume started mingling with the crowd. 

About then we started hearing sounds of drums from the Louvre, but all we could see were the tops of rifles with bayonets moving across the street. 

Soon enough they arrived, and proceeded to march in various ways around the area in front of the Arc de Triomphe. 

A crowd began to organize itself between the arch and the Tuileries.  I went to investigate and saw a contingent of soldiers on horseback gathering.  Just as I started to take a picture, they began moving toward the arch. 

They spent some time in the same area as the marching soldiers, but the crowd was so dense we could not get a good view.  Then the horses emerged, Napoleon (The fellow in red, walking.)  emerged, the marching soldiers emerged, and everybody went home.

So did we.

Thanks Barbara -- without your tip we would have missed the whole, weird, mysterious, but very cool event!