And we're off

While the Opening Ceremonies (don't think I got a ticket, but that's another story) haven't happened yet, the first official games of Paris 2024 took place today (Wednesday), with soccer taking place at stadiums around the country (including the US in Marseilles) and rugby at the Stade de France.

With the US playing host France in the first match in both sports, I decided against the two-hour high-speed train ride to Marseille and made my first bus trip of the Games, heading to the Stade de France for a bunch of matches across the afternoon.

I spent the morning getting a little more familiar with the Main Press Center, which is located across numerous floors of the Palais de Congres, a multi-storied convention center. The ground floor and the floor below ground are both filled with different stores and restaurants, along with a movie theater. The first floor has many of the Olympic help desks and a few food stands (that don't have much of anything terribly good), the second floor has the work room for both the press and the photographers along with some press conference rooms, while the third floor has more press conference rooms and other offices.

I was able to find, after a few trips around different hallways, a currency exchange location, where I changed some American money into Euros. I also found a chicken Caesar salad for lunch, but still haven't gone to the restaurants downstairs. My hotel's breakfast options (as expected) are not terribly great, with mostly bread products, which isn't great for someone who needs to stay away from breads.

However, I have successfully managed to navigate the Paris Metro a couple of times getting from my hotel to the Main Press Center, which was one of my chief concerns coming in to Paris, so that is a plus. 

And finally, after two Olympics with basically no fans in the stands, I can't say how great it was to hear the stadium come alive today. And when the French rugby team came out, it was absolutely insane. Tokyo and Beijing were great, but hearing the roar of the crowd is pretty cool.


The Stade de France is hosting the rugby competitions at the start of the Paris Olympics.

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