These people are playing boules, a popular game in France. Some people refer to it as petanque, which I think is boules with different rules. The aim is to get your large, heavy metal balls (sorry, no other good way to phrase that sentence) as close to the small colored ‘jack’ or 'pig' as possible without touching it. The winner is the person whose ball is closest to the jack.
You see old guys in the parks around Paris in the afternoons or early evenings playing the game. One guy in the picture above can't look; the guy next to him sees me taking his picture and is showing off. 
This is the first time I have ever seen the ladies playing. You GO, girls!!PS - The game petanque was born in 1907 (after boules), the name coming from the Provence ped tanco, which means 'feet together.' It is played on a shorter terrain with players throwing the boules from a rough circle scratched in dirt without any run-up at all.
