Despite a recent agreement preventing an airport strike in Paris on 17 July, one union is still threatening to walk out in the lead up to the Olympic Games.
20.07.2024 - 11:03 / cntraveler.com
This story about breakdancing in Paris is part of How Paris Moves, a series of dispatches about communities and social change in France through the lens of the 2024 Summer Olympics.
On a cloudy Saturday in June, in the Riquet neighborhood of Paris, a battle is beginning. As over six hundred spectators watch, two people step forward in a cavernous space as music soars all around us, orchestrated by a live band and a DJ mixing together Afro-Latin beats. Before the crowd, a young b-boy breakdances with moves at once sharp and smooth. Across from him, a woman wields her skirt as she dances the salsa, her movements growing faster with the music. They excite the audience composed of eager teenagers, families with children, and fellow dancers awaiting their turns to perform, who applaud as the dancers interpret the music with their own individual styles. The scene is vibrant and welcoming, positively electric. It’s a competition, yes—but it’s first and foremost a community.
This is the Centquatre-Paris, an expansive multipurpose cultural center in the heart of the 19th arrondissement. As host to practitioners and audiences of wide-ranging art forms (dance being just one of many), it offers public performances, concerts, workshops, talks, exhibitions, and festivals throughout the year. The building dates back to the 19th century—for over 120 years, it was home to Paris’s municipal undertakers until the industry’s privatization in the mid-1990s—and has been a designated historic monument since 1997. In 2003, the office of the Mayor of Paris tasked an architecture firm, Atelier Novembre, with the space’s renovation into an artistic space, as proposed by Centquatre’s current director, José-Manuel Gonçalvès.
When it opened in 2008, some critics saw the center as a symbol of gentrification, a temple dedicated to sifting “legitimate art” from more community-led forms of artistic performance. But soon enough, dancers from various backgrounds began to use the space for practicing and rehearsals. Access to Centquatre’s public spaces is free, there’s about 269,000 square feet of usable space, and the many large windows let in copious amounts of natural light. Most importantly, the center welcomes art in all its forms. During my visit to Centquatre, I see people of all types practicing: tap dancers, voguers, roller derby players, jugglers—and of course, b-boys and b-girls, whom I have come to meet.
I approach a group of dancers focused on their steps. They’re a diverse bunch, in age, race, and gender, all friendly with each other despite their differences. Among them, 16-year-old Mathis is breakdancing on the floor. Tan with tight curls, his pronounced height is betrayed by his voice, crackling with puberty.
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Despite a recent agreement preventing an airport strike in Paris on 17 July, one union is still threatening to walk out in the lead up to the Olympic Games.
The Skift Travel Podcast is continuing its series on the Paris Olympics. This episode features a discussion with Patrick Mendes, Accor’s CEO for Europe and North Africa. Accor is an official partner for this year’s Games, as well as Europe’s largest hotel group.
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With just hours to go until the Opening Ceremony for the Paris 2024 Olympics, chaos has hit the country’s transport network. On the night of Thursday, July 25, a series of fires spread across France’s high-speed rail lines, causing delays, cancelations, and disruptions to the rail system.
France's rail network has been thrown into chaos today following a series of arson attacks, just hours before the nation officially opens the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Delta Air Lines has been in the spotlight of the airline industry this week following a five-day-long operational meltdown that led to more than 5,000 flight cancellations and stranded passengers and their checked bags for days.
In case you haven’t heard, there’s a large sporting event happening in Paris between July 26 and Aug. 11. Fifteen million visitors are expected in France’s capital for the fun and games, and you may be one of them! Or perhaps you’re waiting for the crowds to thin out before visiting.
Paris is expected to welcome 11.3 million visitors during the Olympic Games, significantly increasing its population density. This surge in visitors is spurring travel demand to international destinations, such as Italy and the United States, that harness this desire to leave crowds behind, also benefiting United Kingdom, Spain, and Greece, as well as farther destinations, such as Thailand or Japan.
This story about swimming in Paris is part of How Paris Moves, a series of dispatches about communities and social change in France through the lens of the 2024 Summer Olympics.
The Skift Travel Podcast is going all-in on the upcoming Summer Olympics in Paris with several interviews lined up. First up is a discussion with Air France-KLM CEO Ben Smith, whose company is an official partner for this year’s Games.
Visitors to the upcoming Paris Olympics will soon have an easy way to save money on transportation. Uber, the popular rideshare app, will be offering an automatic 10 percent discount on rides for passengers from Paris airports between July 22 through Sept. 8. The discount applies to arrivals from both Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG) and Orly Airport Aéroport de Paris (ORY). Passengers can also save 30 percent if they use UberX Share within the city, as long as they are matched with another rider during the trip.