What are tourists doing in France, which has become a fire scene?

The demonstrations, which grew larger in France when the yellow vests who took to the streets every year against the high cost of living, as well as farmers and climate activists protesting fuel prices, joined the protests that high school students have been carrying out for a month for better education conditions, and reached their peak at the weekend, accompanied by acts of violence such as arson and looting.

Historical buildings, police vehicles, automobiles and garbage containers were burned and destroyed, and many businesses such as luxury stores, market chains, local shops, bars and restaurants were also destroyed in acts of looting.

Although things calmed down a bit with partial curfews and other measures taken, another group hit by these demonstrations, which were one of the biggest devastations for France in recent times, were tourists.

A completely different environment was waiting for the tourists who wanted to come to France, which they had been dreaming of for years, with their tickets purchased in advance, and after settling in the hotel room they had booked months in advance, to enjoy their holiday by visiting the world's most famous museums and the streets of Paris, where history and aesthetics meet.

Visiting the Louvre Museum, which is perhaps the primary reason for many tourists to come to Paris, was also impossible. The museum was closed to visitors because students demonstrated in front of the museum.

Activists, including people wearing union vests, overcame the security personnel of the museum and gathered in front of the pyramid-shaped main entrance.

"This is a shame," a Dutch couple repeated, waving their tickets.

An Italian couple said that they "understood the anger of the students" and that they were considering postponing their visit to Wednesday.

(The museum, which hosts approximately 30 thousand visitors every day, is routinely closed on Tuesdays.)

Carrying banners with statements such as "We want more history teachers to educate the Elysee" and "365 days of austerity (policy)", the activists were chanting slogans: "(President) Macron and his police are fighting us, but we are determined to blockade the country."

According to AFP, 73-year-old tourist Anne Boland, who came to Paris from Australia with a plane journey lasting more than 20 hours, was one of the visitors who felt the most disappointment.

Seeing that the Louvre Museum, which he came to with great effort, was also closed due to the protest, Boland could make only one call to other tourists who wanted to come to the country: "Stay at home."