Friday Night is Roller Night
Roller Night in Paris
To fully understand the idiosyncrasies and unique characteristics to Parisian life, it takes time, curiosity and a beady awareness. Much like a fine wine, one must regard its body, inhale its bouquet and of course sample its distinct flavours in order to recognise its true brilliance. Exactly two years ago yesterday, on my third Friday in Paris, I was sitting on the corner of Rue Monge in a cheerful café called Les Arênes. Les Arênes is situated in the heart of bourgeois territory and a five minute walk from the best schools that French education has to offer – Lycée Henri IV and Ecole Polytechnique. Yet this unobtrusive little café holds on firm to its original clientele of lonely wine drinkers, poor bachelors living in small studio apartments and the odd dishevelled student.
At exactly half past ten, I noticed the beer in my 25cl Kronenbourg glass start to tremble. There was an air of apprehension about the place as policemen on roller skates ushered people onto the footpath and proceeded to mount road blocks channelling the traffic elsewhere. The ridiculous image of an important statesman whose escort upon arrival consisted of clown-like police roller skaters had me mocking the customarily notorious gendarmes. As I first thought, the raison d’être for the whistle blowing roller police was just seconds away.
Before long, an impressive roller-stampede was flashing before my eyes at wind piercing speeds. Peering at this spectacle from my lonesome terrace, I waited almost half an hour before the tail of the roller-beast had passed by, leaving an eerie silence in its place.
Later in the year, after having found my very own studio à la bachelor, I watched the roller skating furore almost every Friday. From ten ‘o’ clock onwards, the main roads of central Paris are reserved for an awe-inspiring decent of more than 15,000 skaters.
That night, as the clock struck twelve, the evening’s drama came to a close, just as the winos of Les Arènes gulped down their last mouthful.
I feel the parallel between acquainting oneself with the idiosyncratic characteristics of Parisian life and appreciating a fine wine is fittingly appropriate.
