Something for the Weekend (October 12th - 14th)

After a brief hiatus last weekend, Paris Weekends is back with more suggestions for things to do in Paris.

The Fête des Vendanges de Montmartre

Incredible though it may seem, this event, which celebrates the grape harvest on the slopes of Montmartre, is the third most attended event of the year in Paris, after the Nuit Blanche and Paris Plages. I'm not sure how they actually go about counting these things, but what is sure is that it will be a busy, noisy, tipsy event!

It is basically a celebration of food and drink, with a parade and fireworks on Saturday. Strangely enough, for an event that celebrates grapes, one of the most interesting events could be the Saturday evening beer conference and tasting session (followed by punk concert!) at the Centre musical Fleury Goutte d'Or.

http://fetedesvendangesdemontmartre.com/

 

20 kilomètres de Paris

A far more healthy event this weekend will be the annual 20km run around the streets of Paris. Over 25,000 people will be setting off from the Pont d'Iéna at 10am on Sunday, with the fastest amongst them hoping to arrive at the finish line at the feet of the Eiffel tower around an hour afterwards.

http://www.20kmparis.com/web/index.asp

The Banquet des 5000

Combining food and health is an initiative this Saturday which aims to highlight the amount of food that is wasted each day. A giant vegetable curry will be cooked up in front of the Hotel de Ville, using only items that have been rejected by distributors because of their shapes and sizes. Anyone can visit and take away a portion of curry, and fruit and veg (and recycling recipes!) will also be distributed.

From 1pm. More details here.


The Fête de la Science
Finally, a bit of food for the brain. The annual national science festival offers not only free entry to the Cité des Sciènces at La Villette or the Musée des Arts et Metiers, but also a whole host of events across the city.

The full programme can be found here: http://www.fetedelascience.fr/