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Oberkampf
The Bastille area around Rues de Charonne, d'Oberkampf and de la
Roquette have numerous atmospheric bars and small restaurants and
on Rues de Charonne and d'Oberkampf there are a number of bars appealing
to those who like rock music, motorbikes and leather jackets. The
rue du Faubourg St. Antoine has always been a center for furniture
makers but there are picturesque little alleys and streets in the
area. Rue de Lappe typifies the rejuvenation of the Bastille area.
There are still traces of it being part of the "Gay Paris"of
the 1930's,with its "bals musettes", or dance halls,
frequented between the wars by Piaf, Jean Gabin and Rita Hayworth.
"The Balajo" Dance Hall is still in existence.
Canal St-Martin
canal St-Martin is a pleasant tree-line canal crossed by iron footbridges
and locks and some upscale bars, cafes, restaurants and boutiques
along its banks. By the side of one of these footbridges is the
Hotel du Nord made famous by Marcel Carneís classic film, 'Hotel
du Nord'. The Hotel is now a lively bar used for blues and comedy
evenings, sometimes in English.
Place de la Republique
Place de la Republique is a large square at the meeting place
of three arrondissements, 3rd, 10th and 11th and several avenues.
Its central sculpture, Morice's 'La Republique' , glorifies France's
many revolutionary struggles; rather ironically the square was
vastly enlarged in the mid-19th century by Haussmann to minimize
revolutionary activity in this part of the city.
The Temple Quarter
North-east towards Place de la Republic and including the whole of
the Marais, was once a state within a state owned by the powerful
Order of Knights Templar, founded in the Holy Land to protect pilgrims.
By the 13th century it had its own international banking system and
had become independent of the crown. They became too powerful and
in 1307 Philip the Fair had the Knights arrested and the order dissolved.
In the area, at #51 rue de Montmorency, is the oldest house (1407)
in Paris.
Rue Vieille-du-Temple and rue St. Croix de la Bretonnerie
With its many cafes, restaurants, clubs, fashion boutiques and
“maisons et objects” stores, it is the center of Paris’s
vibrant gay community. Shops are open on Sunday when most other
parts of Paris are closed. On rue St. Crois de la Bretonnerie is
the gay bookstore ‘Les Mots a la Bouche, and a nice salon for
tea is ‘Mariage Freres’, 30-32 rue du Bourg-Tibourg, which
sells 450 varieties of tea.
A noticeable landmark is the Gothic Hotel Herouet and its turret
built in 1528 at the corner of rue des Frances-Bourgeois and rue
Vieille-du-Temple.
Continued...
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