June 21, 2011: Grenoble - Last English Coffee Chat, Fête de la Musique

This is my last week in Grenoble, so I'm starting to hit the "lasts". Today was the last Open House English Coffee Chat get-together - I said good-byes to those friends who won't be at Thursday's Café Français.

And in the evening there was a festival, celebrating the summer solstice - the "Fête de la Musique". There were musicians playing all around town (including at the end of our street, with very loud amplification). After dinner we walked to the old city centre to check out the crowds and the sounds - there was a range from avant-garde jazz, to family-friendly chansons, to hard-core metal rock. The night ended with a downpour, which dampened but didn't seem to end the festivities, but it sent us home early to bed.

 

Dancing in the streets

 

Crowds in one of the city squares

 

A rollerblader weaving through a tricky course

 

One of the local hot-spots - Subway! But not the sandwich chain - this is a bar. With a rather taco-bell-esque fluorescent sign (see left side of awning).