Walking along the Seine, I spotted a bridge with what looked like a million locks clamped on the sides. The next day I stumbled on still another bridge with padlocks. I saw couples holding padlocks and searching for their special place on the bridge on which to attach their locks. The custom is for lovers to lock padlocks on the bridge and throw away the key. This symbolizes their undying love.
These love locks started appearing on Paris bridges in 2008. City officials aren't too happy about the locks however. The estimated 700,000 locks hanging from a bridge weighs 500 kilos per panel. A September 2014 article talks about city officials removing the padlocks, but I was in Paris in October and they're still there.
Some people like the locks; some hate them. I found them rather charming.So if you're ever in Paris with someone you love, check online to see if the love locks on bridges are still there, and if so, bring an engraved padlock with you. You can see that this particular one is not that far from the Notre Dame. (There are people selling and engraving locks near the bridge I visited.)
The bridges that reportedly have these love locks are the Pont des Arts, Pont de l'Archeveche, and the Passerelle Simone de Beauvoir.
This is all for now,
Cecilia
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