Traffic-free areas in Paris
Paris has declared Sundays and public holidays "Paris Respire" time, when traffic will not be permitted on some city streets and in certain areas.
If you’d like to walk, skate or cycle in streets with no fumes, head to the following: the Seine expressways (1st, 4th and 7th arrondissements); the banks of the Canal Saint-Martin (10th Arrondissement); Butte Montmartre (18th Arrondissement); Rue Mouffetard (5th Arrondissement); and south of the Luxembourg gardens (6th Arrondissement).
From the end of March to November, the restrictions also include the rue des Martyrs (9th Arrondissement), rue du Poteau (18th Arrondissement), the Daguerre district (14th Arrondissement), the Sentier district (2nd Arrondissement) and the Roquette district (11th Arrondissement). Until Sept. 11, some roads in the Bois de Vincennes are also included.
Take your pet to the mountains
Those who would like to take their four-legged friends on a vacation in the fresh air of the mountains may want to check out the Almhütten and Chalets Web site at www.huetten.com. More than 300 properties, many with fenced-in yards, allow pets at an additional charge of 10 euros per week. They’re located in Germany, France, Italy, Austria and Switzerland. The houses are rented by the week, but in summer they can be rented for weekends and short stays. Costs vary depending on the number of people and season. If you are worried about the weather, the program offers a good weather guarantee. Should anyone decide to depart because of bad weather, their unused days will be refunded. See the Web site for more information.
BELGIUM: One of Brussels’ more spectacular pageants is the Ommegang on July 1 and 3. The historical re-creation celebrates a procession staged by the city magistrate in 1549 in honor of Charles-Quint, his son Don Philippe, Infant of Spain and Duke of Brabant, and his sisters. The word "ommegang" means "to walk around," and although the first procession was a religious one, the event soon became one in which the rich paraded their wealth. Today’s grand procession starts at 9 p.m. from Rue de la Régence and finishes at the Grand-Place, where a special performance re-creates the 16th-century court. Tickets for seats at this show are 32.50 euros to 67.50 euros. From July 1-3 at 4 p.m., free jousting matches take place on the Place du Grand Sablon.
For details on the route and reservations, go to www.ommegang.be.
DENMARK: During the Great Northern War, the controversial Peter Tordenskjold rose through the ranks of the Danish-Norwegian navy to become a vice-admiral and naval hero known for his daring attacks on Swedish ships, regardless of the odds of winning. This weekend, that historic maritime atmosphere will be re-created in Frederikshaven’s harbor during a festival called Days of Tordenskjold — The Year Is 1717. Some 300 participants from Denmark, Sweden and Norway will take part in the event, which will include fencing demonstrations (Tordenskjold was killed in a duel), a 330-foot-long banquet spread, a 1717 fashion show, historical play, period music and food, cannons and weaponry and ships in the harbor. The festival Web site is www.tordenskjold.dk (in Danish). The tourist board telephone number is (+45) (0)984-23266.
ENGLAND: According to www.chestermysteryplays.com, the 14th-century monks of today’s Chester Cathedral acted out biblical stories for those who couldn’t understand the Latin Mass. Later the city’s guilds took over the performances and played them outdoors in open pageant wagons at various stations throughout the city.
Banned by the church in the 16th century, the plays’ scripts were lost except for those from five cities, the most complete found in Chester. To ensure their survival, the city today stages these series of stories from the Old and New Testament every five years, this summer from June 26 to July 19. The actors are locals who perform in a colorful outdoor medieval pageant on the Cathedral Green.
In three-hour evening and matinee performances, the stories are divided into "The Prophecy," (13 performances starting with the Creation of the World and ending with Jesus’ formative years) and "The Fulfillment," 12 performances of the story of Christ up to the Last Judgment. Tickets cost 10 to 23 pounds for adults and 11 to 18 pounds for children 16 and younger.
GERMANY: On June 26, 1948, flights from West Germany began delivering supplies to the people of West Berlin, who were under a blockade by the Soviet Union. The Berlin Airlift, or Luftbrücke ("air bridge" in German) transported more than 2 million tons of goods from air bases in Wiesbaden, Rhein-Main, Celle and Fassberg to the western section of the city, breaking the blockade.
This year, the city of Wiesbaden and U.S. Army Garrison Wiesbaden celebrate that humanitarian effort with the U.S. Army Wiesbaden Berlin Airlift 60th Anniversary. There will be a special exhibit in Wiesbaden’s Kurhaus through Sunday, and on Sunday, the Wiesbaden Army airfield holds an open house. On the program are aircraft displays, helicopter rides, World War II trucks, the legendary C-130 Hercules airlifter and the C-17 Globemaster III. There will also be a candy-drop re-enactment, military displays, gospel music, military bands, and food and drinks.
The guest of honor will be Col. GailHalvorsen, the pilot who earned the nickname "the Candy Bomber" after dropping candy via tiny parachutes to the children in Berlin.
The free event is open 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Entrance is by shuttle bus only (free for Department of Defense ID card holders, a charge for others). Find more details, including shuttle bus stops, at www.wiesbaden.army.mil.
