14 Juillet à Berlin

Image via Wikipedia//Waiting for the fireworks

As for one of my favorites national holidays - July 4th - I was out of town, I didn't bother to check carefully the events organized in town on this occasion. But France, la France...After reading this article in Gazette de Berlin, I found out that there are some events scheduled for Berlin, in the French Village. The popular celebration started already today, with a Strassenfest on Pariser Platz. The French Embassy is providing some basic info about the groups.

For one month, between 17.06 and 17.07, the Berliner are invited to take part to the Franco-German festival, scheduling various common events.

French people are having a long tradition of living in Berlin, since the 17th century, when the Hughenots found refuge on the city on Spree. Berlin continues to be a French-friendly place, and as a lover of the French culture, you can find many French restaurants, and cultural opportunities. 

Shortly after WWII, despite being one of the Allied powers, the French were not to be granted an occupation zone due to concerns over the great historical animosity between France and Germany, as well as the relatively more minor role played by the French within the alliance. After, thanks to De Gaulle's influence, it upgraded its status at the same level with the US and UK, and set its headquarters at Baden-Baden. 

Currently, in Berlin are living today 13,262 French people. In Prenzlauer Berg or in Kreuzberg you can often hear French spoken on the street. However, the traditional French areas are Wedding or Reinickendorf, formerly part of the French sector.

Bon anniversaire, la France!