Couple enjoy a drink and a smoke as Paris burns around them

By New York Post (World News) | Created at 2026-10-19 13:45:26 | Updated at 2026-10-19 14:56:17 1 hour ago

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C’est la vie. 

A couple in France has gone viral after they were filmed calmly enjoying a glass of wine and a cigarette while fires rage around them — while another woman casually jogged through the worst rioting in years.

The relaxed-looking man and woman, who have been identified, were seen chatting and smoking at an outdoor bistro table, with fires raging feet behind them close to the iconic Arc de Triomphe in Paris.

In another bizarre clip filmed in the French capital, a jogger was seen casually running through a smoke-filled street on Saturday, also completely unfazed by the rioters around her.

A couple enjoys a drink near the Arc De Triomphe in central Paris, as demonstrations against rising living costs and declining public services spiral into rioting.

The young female runner, wearing a sports bra and running shorts, wove among a bonfire of burning e-bikes and protesters as she made her way through the ongoing riot in Paris.

Some 2,500 arrests were made over the weekend as violence and looting broke out across the country.

A jogger runs through a street blocked by protesters during a demonstration in Paris on Saturday, Oct. 17.

In Paris alone, 855 arrests were made as violent groups clashed with officers and looted luxury stores.

French President Emmanuel Macron denounced the violence during an address to the nation on Sunday, blaming radical left-wing groups and criminal gangs.

A couple sits on the terrace of a cafe, whose windows have been damaged on Rue de Rivoli, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2026, a day after nationwide protests against the “high cost of living”, in Paris. AFP via Getty Images

However, the 48-year-old, who leaves office next year, was blasted as out-of-touch and arrogant for leaving France on Monday for a three-day trip to the Middle East.

On Monday, French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu imposed curfews across swathes of France, including parts of Paris and the country’s second-largest city, Marseille.

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