French Pride on Horseback

This afternoon's outing was to the Jeu de Paume for the Diane Arbus exhibition. Coming out I spied a large assembly of uniformed men on horseback--France's Garde Republicaine--the link includes a small image with the same uniforms. View this large.

They were on the far side of the Place de la Concorde, heading upstream (east) along the Seine. I had run to get this close, and at that point the last riders were passing, so this was the best I could do (there must have at least 60 or 70 pairs). The blip is a nice tribute to French national symbols, with the Eiffel Tower (its tip in the clouds) and the National Assembly (the building with the columns on the left). Here is a pair of the Guard (on duty in everyday dress), very nearby about a year ago.

The Diane Arbus show was wonderful--some two hundred photos, and two rooms with a detailed biography and timeline, with many personal items such as notebooks.