Going to beach in Paris? Why not test for Covid?
PARIS : Parisians heading to the opening of Paris Plages, the yearly transformation of sections of the Seine river into man-made beaches, were met with a new attraction on Saturday: Covid-19 test centres.
A series of indicators across the country, including in the French capital, have suggested the virus could once again be gaining momentum. Authorities are pushing an aggressive testing policy to avoid a return to the peaks seen from March to May.
“At Paris-plages people have got the time and they really want to know whether they have been sick ... and there are those who need a certificate to travel on some airlines to go on holiday,” Muriel Prudhomme, a doctor and deputy at the townhall’s health department, told Reuters as a steady stream of people of all ages came to be tested. The artificial beaches on the banks of the Seine in central Paris and the Bassin de la Villette, a man-made lake in the northeast of the city, have been a raging success since they were launched by Paris mayor Bertrand Delanoe in 2002.
As well as sand and views of central Paris’ architecture, Paris Plage offers sporting opportunities such as fencing, giant tablefootball, and open-air gyms looking out over the Seine.