The Pont des Arts: A Love Lock Legacy and Lingering Questions
Did the Pont des Arts Really Collapse into the Seine?
When I last visited Paris at the end of 2019, the Pont des Arts was absolutely brimming with love locks. It felt like every inch of the railings was adorned with them, a testament to countless declarations of affection. Now, with the Olympics on the horizon, there are whispers of them being removed, and even more dramatic tales of the bridge itself succumbing to its weighty tributes and falling into the Seine. What's the real story behind the Pont des Arts today?
The Surprising Origins of the Love Lock Tradition
You might have read online that this practice began in Eastern Europe in the 1980s and spread to Western Europe in the 2000s. However, my own experience and a bit of research tell a different story. The true origin of the love lock phenomenon, as I discovered, lies much closer to home – in my very own Shonan-Hiratsuka area of Japan, specifically at the local television tower.
I vividly recall seeing this tradition unfold 55 years ago on a popular Japanese television show, Kyosen no Quiz Derby. It was a fascinating cultural moment that predated its widespread adoption in Europe by decades.
