D and I have been wearing our poppies on the lapels of our coats the past week here in Paris (they’ve taken a beating, as evidenced in the photo above). In my ignorance, I did not realize that the French do not have a similar practice in the weeks leading up to Remembrance Day, known here as “l’Armistice du 11 novembre”, or Armistice Day. On this day, they mark the signing of the armistice that ended WWI, and honour their war dead from that conflict.

People have been glancing at our poppies. One French woman asked us, “qu’est-ce que ca signifie, le coquelicot?” We explained to her that as Canadians, we wear the poppy as a symbol of remembrance and honour for the Canadian men and women in the military who have served and died in various wars and conflicts. She seemed to understand better when we added that it is similar to the English Poppy Appeal.

As we rode the metro to the Champs Elysées and l’Arc de Triomphe this morning to watch the Armistice Day ceremonies, a gentleman gave D his blue cornflower pin, on the back of which is written: Bleuet de France Mémoire-Solidarité. While France has no poppy campaign, the blue cornflower is a symbol of solidarity and remembrance.

We arrived near l’Arc de Triomphe in plenty of time to watch the ceremonial parade preceding the arrival of President Hollande and his motorcade.

Though we both love France in general and Paris in particular, we’re also proud Canadians, so made sure to catch the CBC’s live coverage of Remembrance Day ceremonies in Ottawa.