(Note: for 2010 Bastille Day information, see here.)
Petanque, Gauloises cigarettes, Ricard, French music, French food, even a guillotine. Smith Street will celebrate Bastille Day Sunday and there's something for everyone.
The biggest Bastille Day in the U.S. takes place from noon - 10 p.m. this year. (Last year it ended at 8 p.m. and nobody wanted to go home.) The street will be covered in sand for the famous petanque tournament, played with tennis-ball-sized metal balls. 80 teams from around the world are competing this year, and the competition will be fierce.
Bar Tabac is a major sponsor (along with Robin des Bois and Ricard). Last year, people were dancing in the street, and the Blue Orchard orchestra (right) 
made you feel like you were in Paris.
An exciting skateboard tournament will be held on the north end of Smith Street as well.
UPDATE: Ever wonder how Smith Street gets covered in so much sand? See here.
UPDATE2: Photos of the 2009 Bastille Day happenings here.
For more photos and video of previous Bastille Day events, see:
- Bastille Day in Brooklyn: The French Conquer Smith Street
- Brooklyn's Bastille Day: Smith Street, Sunday
- Bastille Day in Brooklyn -- La Rue de Smith Sautait!
- Bastille Day Rendez-Vous 2008: Pétanque, Bal Musette And... The Solex: Pardon Me for Asking
- Smith Street Goes French Again Brooklyn Eagle
- Bastille Day Means Pentanque on Smith Street Bergen Carroll
Photos by MK Metz
Go to McBrooklyn's HOME PAGE.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Bastille Day 2009 in Brooklyn: This Sunday on Smith Street
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6 comments:
What used to be a largely Puerto Rican Nabe and prior to that an Italian area somehow celebrates French culture these days. Isn't that sad? Tells you something about the people moving in and taking over. Is there actually a French community in NYC that is unrelated to the UN?? Everytime I walk past that Bar Tabac I have to laugh. Why isn't there a guy in there with a beret playing an accordion and I tend to wonder if instead of a toilet that there's not a little room with a hole in the floor as I recall all those French bars had in the pre-Euro days. . . Petanque? Whatever happened to Baci ball??
@Philip
Taking over? New York is where every culture comes to return home.
And besides that, every culture in New York is constantly moving around and settling and resettling.
Looking forward to patanque, which is also a Caribbean game, if I am not mistaken!
There are more than 60,000 French folks in New York, and the number is growing. Bastille Day on Smith is one of the most enjoyable events in Boerum Hill of the year. (I'm not French.)
I'm not French either.
Why would anyone say anything negative about any kind of neighborhood celebration? I am looking forward to having a great time on Smith street for Bastille Day and I'm not French. I do love French wine and French food. This is wonderful for the entire neighborhood!
I'm French Creole and I can't wait to take photo's and enjoy the company of my brothers. The thing that makes this country great is what we call a melting pot!!
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