The Olympic torch will finally enter France
when it reaches the southern seaport of Marseille on Wednesday. And it's already been quite a journey. After being lit by the sun’s rays on April 16 in Ancient Olympia, the torch was carried around Greece before leaving Athens aboard a three-mast ship named Belem, headed for Marseille. The Belem was first used in 1896, the same year the modern Olympics came back.
Just five days after landing on French shores, the torch heads up the Alpine mountain pass of Chamonix-Mont-Blanc for Olympic Day on June 23. The Haute-Savoie region is known for its outstanding Chamonix ski resort, which hosts World Cup races, for sweeping views across glacier fields to nearby Italy, and — some would say more importantly — as a producer of fine cheese.
The torch is to arrive on the streets of Paris on July 14 — hardly surprising, considering it's Bastille Day, France’s national day. The torch will stay the following day in Paris, then exit again before snaking back to the French capital via Versailles — home to the resplendent Royal Palace — and the suburbs of Nanterre on July 24 and Seine Saint-Denis on July 25.
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