This Sunday marks Bastille Day, the French holiday that celebrates the beginning of the French Revolution. But the celebrations won’t just be on the streets of Paris – plenty of American cities also throw festivals to mark the beginning of France’s independence. Here are five awesome Bastille Day celebrations in the U.S.
Bastille Days, Milwaukee
This four-day event is one of the largest French festivals in the country. An Eiffel Tower replica is erected at Cathedral Square Park, and the annual 5K fun run is really a reenactment of the storming of the Bastille prison. Concerts, French food, a Mardi Gras night and plenty of wine fuel this non-stop French party.
Bastille Day Celebrations, New Orleans
It stands to reason that America’s most French-influenced city would throw some of the country’s top Bastille Day celebrations. In the French Quarter, you can catch a free parade, walking tour and dog contest before heading to the Bastille Day Fête at the Old U.S. Mint for live music and food on Saturday. Sunday brings picnics, vintage car shows and a bartenders and waiters race at the French Market. Over in Faubourg St. John, you can enjoy French games, food and drinks on Saturday.
Bastille Day at Eastern State Penitentiary, Philadelphia
Philly throws quite the Bastille Day bash at Eastern State Penitentiary, where actors reenact the storming of the Bastille, capturing Marie Antoinette and dragging her to her fate at the guillotine. Marie’s famous line of “Let them eat cake” is turned into “Let them eat Tastykake!” as the crowd is showered in thousands of cakes. After this fun reenactment, you can explore the restaurants of the Fairmount neighborhood to end the day with a fittingly French dinner.
Bastille Day on 60th Street, NYC
New York’s 60th Street turns into a mini-Paris of sorts during Bastille Day on 60th Street. You’ll find plenty of French food, including crepes, macaroons and a three-course banquet lunch, as well as loads of entertainment by mimes, accordion players and French rockers. You’ll even have a shot at winning a trip to Paris, Saint Barts or New Orleans.
Bastille Day Party, Boston
Boston’s French Cultural Center hosts the annual Bastille Day Party, which skips dramatic reenactments of the revolution and instead fills the streets this year with francophone sounds by the Afro-Mediterranean funky jazz group Atlas Soul and Quebec’s country rock band Madame Moustache. Beer, wine and French food will keep the party going all night on Friday.
How do you plan on celebrating Bastille Day?
(Main image: Mark Murrmann, Eastern State Penitentiary)
