2024 Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony live: Games of the XXXIII Olympiad begin with festivities, parade of nations on the Seine

PARIS — Two hours before the Opening Ceremony of the Paris Olympics, the streets of the French capital were awash with people.

Throngs of revelers poured down Rue De Boetie and Rue De Penthievre in the direction of the Seine. Others watched the flow of humanity from bar patios and apartment balconies.

The most striking part of the scene were the displays of national pride. There was a Canadian family of four clad in maple leaf hats and an American family of four wearing the star-spangled banner as capes. There was a French couple in matching Victor Wembanyama jerseys and a man with his face painted like the Chinese flag. You could find soccer jerseys of every possible national team, from Colombia to Portugal to England to Chile.

Sprinkles of rain didn’t dampen the mood at all. There were plenty of smiles and laughter…unless you were one of the unlucky saps behind the wheel of a car.

Here’s a police officer informing the driver of a black sedan that he needs to make a U-turn.