With a budget of – at a low estimate – over 10 billion euros, of which the public sector contributes over four billion, the Olympic Games in Paris are quite an expensive event. After all, the state contributes as much to this fortnight-long event as it does to the entire cultural life of France over the course of an entire year. The opening ceremony alone is said to have cost around 125 million euros, almost as much as the annual budget of the Paris Opera.
The fact that the orchestra musicians had to play in rain ponchos while their expensive instruments were exposed to the rain is a scandal in itself.
