KCD in Paris Blog - Dec 2006

With only an hour of sleep on the plane ride over, we hit the ground running, arriving at the hotel with some time to get settled. Then we headed over to the Paris Bercy Arena for soundcheck. Everyone seemed as excited to see us as we were to be there. When we were ready to go, the game started with an adrenaline-rush opening. Performing for 15,000 French fans was the most exhilarating experience, words cannot describe it. They were extremely happy to see us, and they were clapping along to the beat of our music. With the bass pumping, the lights flashing and my heart racing, I never experienced anything like it. It was also great to see some local fans wearing Knicks jerseys at the event!

The next day, we had some time to visit the beautiful city. We had croissants for breakfast, crepes for lunch and had a wonderful dinner together. We tried to take in as much of Paris as we could in the small amount of free time that we had. I was able to see everything that makes Paris such a majestic city, from the Tour Eiffel, the Louvre and the Arc de Triomphe to the Champs-Elysses and even the Moulin Rouge... with some shopping in between, of course.

I had a great time and the people of Paris were so friendly and helpful. The trip was too quick and the game went by too fast. It was a fabulous time, and I hope we could come back for another All-Star game in the future! Au Revoir!

Paris was absolutely amazing. I've been to Europe a few times before, but this one of my most favorite trips there. What made it so amazing was that the Knicks City Dancers were invited to perform at the Nike France All Star Game held in Paris. Knowing that we were going to Paris to perform was exciting... but we perform all the time at the World's Most Famous Arena, so I didn't comprehend how exciting it really was going to be. The entire trip felt like one long continuous day, which began with the triple overtime game on Dec. 27 when the Knicks beat Detroit! Then we had rehearsal early the next morning before we flew out, and because of the time difference when we landed in Paris, it was already the day of the the All Star Game, so we went straight into court rehearsal when we arrived.

We had the opportunity to perform during 4 different time outs. The way in which the crowd embraced us was completely overwhelming. When we ran out for the first time the crowd was going crazy. Everyone had balloon "thunderstick" noisemakers. Throughout our performance, the crowd continuously showed their support and infectious energy for us as they began clapping to the beat as we danced. When the routine ended and the music stopped, the applause was deafening. The feeling was unreal. One I will never be able to forget.

The following day we had free, so we saw the beautiful sights of Paris and then we went out to a great dinner together at a restaurant called L'Etoile. Unfortunately, we had to fly out early the next morning, but I think we were all still running off the excitement from the whole trip that we didn't even mind... that is until we landed on New Years Eve. I bet most of us had a pretty low-key evening : )