Bruce, American & European Football, Stolen Art and Gay Pride

An action-packed week again in Paris as summer brings this city to life. Went to the Parc des Princes to photograph Bruce Springsteen's annual visit. He surprised me by speaking a bit of French and didn't surprise me by still being phenomenal on stage.


Imagine my surprise when I found out that there was an French league of American football. The league Championship, called the Diamond Helmet, was played this week between the Flash of La Courneuve and the Templiers of Elancourt.


What struck me was how small the players were, that there was no visible clock (the referee yelled out how much time was left) and how the players yelled in French but interspersed English expressions such as "one time!" (it took me hearing this a few times before I realized it was English!).

To find out who won (for all you betters) and to see my photo expose of the event, complete with captions describing the action, CLICK HERE. (click on the first photo to see the images in larger format)

Staying on the football theme, I went with some friends to watch the European football semi-final match between Germany and Turkey. We went to a Turkish hangout to watch the game with diehard Turkish fans, ready to support the underdog. Turkey lost but the match was really exciting. Through these videos I shot, you can witness the highs ...



and the lows ...



I shot the opening of a new exhibition at the Jewish Art & History museum in Paris which featured a collection of work that was stolen from Jewish families by the Nazis during the occupation of WW II.


The annual Gay Pride Parade winded its way through the city. I was able to take a fews shots on my way to the football championship but didn't spend very long watching the celebration. It's always an entertaining event but there are more and more parade-related problems each year.



You never know what you'll see while eating dinner in Paris: CLICK HERE

And finally, I came home last night to find a big group of models from Belgium in my courtyard, having a party by candlelight. A fashion designer lives in my building (which explains my post from a few weeks ago) and organized the soiree. They were really warm (as in friendly, not skin temperature) and invited me to join them drinking champagne. After some soul-searching and deep contemplation (1/2 of 1 second) I agreed and had a nice evening surrounded by an odd blend of beauty and Flemish sounds.

Some photos of the week:

Bruce rocks
Bruce and the crowd
Gay pride?
Stolen and returned Monet on display