As in the film "Titanic", they were a bit the kings of the world on the Seine, in the middle of Paris, on the night from Wednesday to Thursday.
A half-hour pneumatic kayak trip, obviously prohibited, which ended with a three-hour hearing at the river brigade.
The two Parisian students, aged 21 and 23, are getting off rather cheaply.
Already, they have not capsized, which allows them to be still alive.
Then they will just pay three fines.
Two to 135 euros for violating the curfew and not wearing a mask.
And a third which could amount to 1500 euros for this navigation with a non-motorized vehicle and the non-wearing of a life jacket.
"For the paddles, we took planks and baking sheets"
“It was still great,” savored one of the two sailors for a night, whom we contacted this Thursday.
In the tradition of rifle jokes, this third year medical student sees things big for the birthday of his best friend, who is trying to get a master's degree in mathematics.
“We systematically offer ourselves stupid things,” he contextualizes.
Last time it was a trampoline.
There I said to myself:
Hey, we're going canoeing on the Seine!
"
The idea does not seem at all absurd to his friend.
On the contrary, he is enthusiastic.
And here they are, a few minutes later, in a large store specializing in sporting goods.
They leave with a superb pneumatic apple green kayak.
It is 9 pm and the night is young.
“We were in trouble for the paddles.
So we provided ourselves with planks and baking sheets.
"
"We pretended to be zen"
Around 11 p.m., it's the departure of Paris by night by kayak.
It's not going to last long.
At the bridge between Île de la Cité and Île Saint-Louis, the first spectators show up around 11:30 p.m.
And it is not to applaud them.
"We saw the police arrive on the platform," recalls the medical student.
And then there was the river brigade and the fire brigade.
"
Little moment of hesitation.
The police order the two freshwater sailors to return to shore.
They do so, a little pitiful: “We pretended to be Zen but in real life we were not being smart.
With video surveillance they had followed our entire journey.
"
Police officers verify their identities and set fines.
“They told us it was the first time they've been verbalizing people for this reason.
»In Paris, it is forbidden to navigate on board a boat that does not have a motor.
It is far too dangerous.
The only exemptions are granted for sporting or recreational events which have been declared.
"With the curfew, there were no boats so there was no risk of capsizing", attempts to plead a student.
"If they capsize, they go through it", assures a school boat manager
“No, but they don't realize the risk they took!
a person in charge of a school boat chokes.
Right now the water is at four degrees.
If they capsize, they go through it.
This should not have made laugh the rescuers of the river brigade who spend their time fishing out suicides.
Especially with the general atmosphere after the end of the year celebrations not cheerful for everyone and the Covid.
"
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“We kept working from the confinement, apologizes one of the two young men.
There I had just finished an internship at the hospital.
Well, that was bullshit.
"
