Globe Trotting
Tourists took selfies with their phone Monday on the Pont des Arts bridge in Paris. The thousands of locks that are attached to the Pont des Arts in Paris have created a hazard with their weight causing a chunk of fencing to fall into the Seine. The fencing tumbled June 8 on the pedestrian bridge.
Locks of love fell bridge’s fencing
PARIS » The thousands of locks that cling like barnacles to the Pont des Arts in Paris have become a symbol of danger, rather than love, after a chunk of fencing fell off under their weight.
The fencing tumbled late June 8 on the pedestrian bridge, which crosses the Seine. No one was hurt when the approximately 6 1⁄2-foot stretch of fencing came down on the Pont des Arts.
Thousands of couples have latched padlocks to the bridge and thrown their keys into the river as symbols of lasting love, resulting in what some decry as an eyesore. The locks are periodically removed by the city but spring up ever faster.
Deputy Mayor Bruno Julliard said the city was already soliciting suggestions from artists on what to do to the locks when the fencing collapsed. Officials are hoping to persuade visiting lovers to show their undying affection in less disruptive ways.
Music festival has African flavor
DETROIT » Concert of Colors organizers say the annual Detroit festival "has the whole world in its bands," but Africa’s myriad grooves are a focus for this year’s installment.
Headliners announced for the July Midtown-area festival include Seun Kuti. The son of Afrobeat musician-activist Fela Kuti performs July 13 at the Max M. Fisher Music Center with many of his father’s collaborators.
Other artists are the Sierra Leone Refugee All Stars, who perform the same day at the center, and Congo-born Ricardo Lemvo & Makina Loca play July 5 at New Center Park.
Motor City music gets a spotlight July 12 with Detroit-raised star Don Was. He leads the festival’s All-Star Revue and bands through hometown rocker Bob Seger’s album "Live Bullet," recorded in 1976 at Detroit’s Cobo Arena.
Hilton enters deal with Myanmar
YANGON, Myanmar » Hilton Worldwide has signed a contract to operate five hotels in Myanmar, which has emerged as a popular Southeast Asian tourist destination after military rule was lifted in 2011.
Hilton is teaming up with Eden Group, a Myanmar conglomerate with businesses from hotels to energy.
Hilton says it will re-brand Eden hotels in the capital Naypyitaw and Ngapali beach in western Rakhine state. It will open hotels in Inle lake in Shan state, Bagan in central Myanmar and the central city of Mandalay.
