Canal Saint Martin
The Seine is a very
twisty river, and here and there along its course canals have been dug to cut
some of the corners.
One of these runs clean through the middle of Paris. The Canal Saint-Martin
starts opposite the Ile Saint-Louis in the Bassin de l’Arsénal
and runs under the Place de la
Bastille: it then follows the Boulevard Richard-Lenoir – again under the road.
Paris is, in fact, as full of holes as a sponge. Under a single road you can
find: sewers so big you can go on a boat-trip to see them:
railway or
Métrolines – the Métro rarely runs deep, it’s usually just under the road:
canals like the Canal
St.-Martin, taking barges up to 1500 tons: tunnels for gas, electricity, water
supplies: mines and quarries
– Plaster of Paris is made from gypsum, once mined
actually under the streets: car parks
– under all the main squares and a large number of
streets there are vast parking areas: cellarsand basements
– both houses and
shops have cellars which go not only under the buildings, but under the street
as well.
The Canal
comes out of the ground again at the Quai de Jemappes and runs near the Gare de
l’Est and on to La Villette.
French canals are big, and this one handles barges
carrying 1000 tons of sand from the mouth of the Seine to the builders of Paris.
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