Martine in Paris - Promenades
MONOPOLY
Third and last ROUND of Monopoly Game ...
Belleville - Canal Saint-Martin
Our walk takes us mainly through a part of Belleville where its past still floats in some of the old buildings. The last part of the walk follows the Canal Saint-Martin to the Place de la Bastille.
Finally, we arrive at Boulevard de Belleville, the cheapest street in Monopoly.
At the beginning of the 20th century, Belleville had the image of a poor and remote district, home to the excluded of Haussmann's Paris and to immigrants, then mainly Jews from Eastern Europe, Poles and Armenians.
Today, Belleville retains this image of diversity, with the presence of several communities: North Africans arrived from the 1960s, and Chinese and Africans from the 1980s. Although these communities can eventually live in different parts of Belleville, they all meet on the Boulevard de Belleville, during market days on Tuesday and Friday mornings.
For Monopoly lovers and investors of all kinds, I'm not sure it's a good idea to invest in Boulevard de Belleville. However, it would certainly be worth investing in other streets of the now very trendy Belleville district.
After a roll of eight on the dice, now let's head for the nearby Avenue de la République.
This gives the opportunity to walk along rue Oberkampf, a busy street by night with many trendy bars. There are also a number of charming old courtyards naturally attracting the interest of promoters ...
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Let's turn right onto the rue Oberkampf, once busy with many workshops working leather, wood and, especially, metal. It is all gone, only few courtyards keeping that memory, for how long ?
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Behind the door at 156 is the Cité Durmar, a small private courtyard coveted by promoters. The small houses, originally farmhouses, were later used as small metal workshops.
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At 125, the impressive red brick building of Cité Griset was once used by a metal company specialised in rolling mills.
With gentrification most of the buildings have been converted into lofts, however it is good to see that some of the old spririt is still there, with the letterpresses in place of the old steam engines.
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At 104, behind the porch is the cité du Figuier (fig tree) with nice courtyards. The small houses were once metal workshops. The factory workers used to live in the large building giving onto the street. There is still a large fig tree. The cité is famous for a blue pavilion from the 1900 World Exhibition, with elephants and palm trees on its façade. A charming and quiet environment where the square metre price is constantly climbing...
Let's turn right onto Avenue de la République.
Unlike the narrow Rue Oberkampf, the straight and wide Avenue de la République is lined with Haussmann-style buildings, shaded by curtains of trees. Usually, when coming to this area, I just cross it to get to Rue Neuve Popincourt, Rue Ternaux and Rue de la Folie Méricourt. So this is finally the first time I take the time to walk along it - which isn't all that unpleasant after all.
We are now walking northwards towards Boulevard de la Villette, our next destination after having rolled two on the dice.
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Let's turn right onto rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud, which, like rue Oberkampf, is very popular at night.
There are still a few old industrial units here, where workers worked leather and metal. The workshops were located on the ground floor, while the workers lived upstairs.
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At number 66, Cité d'Angoulême was once the location of the Dutertre factory, a porcelain painting factory now used by architect Jean Nouvel.
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At number 72, the Passage de la Fonderie (foundry), where the name evokes the hustle and bustle of the old days, is now a peaceful spot with green plants.
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Let's turn left onto rue Saint-Maur. We are now passing the church of Saint-Joseph, built by Théodore Ballu, the architect of the Hôtel de Ville. Renamed Saint-Joseph des Nations in the 1990s, it emphasises its involvement with immigrant communities.
Let's continue to rue du Faubourg du Temple, where we take a right. We turn left onto boulevard de la Villette.
The portion of Boulevard de la Villette that we're now following, north of Boulevard de Belleville, is mainly Chinese. There all sorts of businesses, including the oldest profession in the world.
Between 50 and 56 boulevard de la Villette, let's enter a social housing block. On the right is the cité Saint-Chaumont, with its miraculously preserved old houses, once used by cardboard craftsmen. It is a peculiar mixture of architecture, with these small houses surrounded by modern buildings built where the Folies-Bergères scenery used to be stored.
No. 58 keeps the memory of the Bornibus mustard, praised by food lovers at the end of the 19th century. The façade of the building still displays the many awards and prizes.
After a four on the dice, I'll meet you at the Gare de Lyon under the big clock, near the gate, as Barbara used to sing.
This gives an opportunity to walk along the Canal Saint-Martin to reach the Bastille...
- Let's continue up to the Place du Colonel Fabien, where the white dome of the French Communist Party (PCF) appears, not really in the Monopoly theme...
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Let's turn left onto rue de la Grange aux Belles. In french the street might sound romantic, like an old farm where guys could hang in the arms of their belles. However, it rather evokes poor souls horribly hanged and their bodies exhibited on the sinister gibbet of Montfaucon, built here in the Middle Ages.
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We walk along the chapel of the Saint-Louis hospital, an hospital built in 1606 by King Henri IV for plague victims. The chapel was located outside the hospital so that local residents could attend the service.
Definitely a spooky spot!
- Nous arrivons au canal Saint-Martin, que nous allons suivre à gauche quai de Jemmapes. L’endroit est très sympatique pour une agréable pause au bord de l’eau.
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At rue du Faubourg du Temple, the canal becomes underground. We continue along the Square Jules Ferry and the Promenade Richard Lenoir.
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On our right is the Bataclan; in the garden a stone commemorates the victims of the attack on 13 November 2015.
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We come within sight of the Place de la Bastille. Between the trees, against a blue (that day) sky, the statue of the golden Génie floats at the top of the colonne de Juillet.
Texte / Photos : Martine Combes
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