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Walk
No. 1: Montorgueil to Notre Dame
Time:
1 ½ hours with no stops; recommended start
time: early morning or late afternoon after 4 p.m.
I
added a few diversions at the end of the walk that are not included in
the total walking time.
What's special:
Covers four arrondissements with different moods and ambiance, i.e.,
village/market life, the Pompidou art center, the monumental
architecture of Saint-Eustache, Bourse de Commerce, Hôtel de Ville and
Notre-Dame.
Added Note:
There are so many places along this stroll that you will want to go in
and gape at the interiors. (je peux regarder? Can I look?)
It will
give you a desire to eat your way across the walk in the cute, picturesque,
antique cafés and restaurants along rue Montorgueil and hopefully the moon will
be rising as you cross the Pont Arcole (bridge) at the Hôtel de Ville. (In
Paris, a good moon rising begins two days before its full phase.)
The Walk
At Metro Sentier in the
2nd arrondissement, exit “les Petits Carreaux/rue Reaumur”.
All around you is the fabric and garment district (only licensed buyers
need enter).
Facing the green arch that
reads “Marché Montorgueil” walk along the pedestrian street, rue
des Petits Carreaux, laid with small stones called pavés (pavey).
On each side of the street
are shops: butcher, fish, cheese, bread, pharmacy, grocery stores, clothes,
etc. Monday-Saturday all of the commerce closes between 1 p.m. and 4 p.m.
for lunch and finally at 8 p.m.
Rue Montorgueil began
as a commercial food area specializing in seafood.
The street officially
begins at the intersection of rues Saint-Sauveur and Léopold Bellan
and Montorgueil and and Petits Carreaux.
 Rue Montorgueil
The house numbers begin
at 100 on the left and 71 on the right side of the street Montorgueil.
Look up on the left at
no. 78 for a seafood restaurant from 1820. Upstairs in the
dining room you will find the remaining five oil paintings on the
plaster walls. Ask to see them.
Inside the bar is one of the zinc bar counters not confiscated during
WWII.
Rocher de Cancale Soon on the right at no.
51, you will see a sign for the Pâtisserie Stohrer.
The man who opened this
business first came to Paris in 1725 with Maria Leczynska. She would marry
Louis XV. About 1864 the patisserie was decorated with the paintings of
a celebrated painter of the period, Paul Buadry.
Patisserie Stohrer
Across the street from
the patisserie is “Au Compas d’Or. The present 1930s hotel replaced the
former “Le Compas d’Or” (The Golden compass) whose courtyard sheltered
the stagecoaches headed to Dreux (west of Paris and Versailles).
Continue on rue Montorgueil
and cross rue Etienne Marcel. You enter the 1st arrondissement and walking
toward Les Halles, you pass the restaurant “l’Escargot”, dating from 1832.
A taste of the near east
is at no. 21. An authentic Arab market with many of the , beans, sweets,
canned goods. If you want to take out this Moroccan Ali Baba prepares homemade
couscous.
Chocolate craving stop
Charles Chocolatier at no. 17.
At the end of the street,
turn right on rue de Turbigo toward the church,
Saint-Eustache. You will
see the domed Bourse building (at the bourse, look at that tower with lightening
rod -- Colonne Astrologique. Continue toward the plaza, with the Bourse
in front of you.
Go to the circular plaza
and stand next to the stone sculpture (a the head on its side).
The sculpture in Place
René Cassin is by Henri de Miller (1986). If you walk to the face
of the sculpture, face the church, look up you will notice a sundial and
carved elk head on Saint-Eustache. (No details, just interesting and different.)
To your right of the head
and to the left of the fountain, walk along the lively, tree-lined path
Saint-John Perse toward the modern glass buildings. You are also walking
over Les Halles.
Les Halles
At the end of the alley
is the restaurant le Sundeck, the Novotel hotel and rue Berger.
Dining hint
l’Atelier Berger, 49, rue
Berger (this is the opposite way of our walk) – I recommend l’Atelier
Berger for lunch and evening dining.
Don’t be afraid of going
with their suggestion of the day (for hours, see “Restaurants and
Cafes”).
When you arrive at Novotel,
turn left onto rue Berger. The modern building you see in the distance
is the Georges Pompidou Centre.
As you continue along rue
Berger another 200 yards, it opens up onto a plaza on your right.
You are now standing over
a former church and cemetery.
Fontaine des Innocents
Looking into the plaza
you will see four arcades on the other side of the Fontaine des Innocents.
If you passed through those
arcades you would be on the street where Henri VI was assassinated.
Rue de la Ferronnerie
Continue rue Berger and
cross Boulevard Sébastopol into the 4th arrondissement. The street
names begin to change now. After crossing Sébastopol you are on
rue Aubry le Boucher and then it becomes rue Saint-Merri.
The former municipal baths
in this neighborhood is the red-brick building at 33 rue Saint Merri.
Now it is a police station.
Walk through the Square
Stravinsky past the fountain with the rotating sculptures toward the church.
At the church turn right on rue du Cloître St. Merri (you will
not see the street name right away) and go to the front of the church,
St. Merri, on rue Saint-Martin.
Note: St. Merri
was constructed between 1525 and 1552. During the Revolution, it was
transformed into a saltpeter factory (sodium nitrate, potassium
nitrate). In 1795 it was converted into a “temple du commerce” for the
use of religious believers.
(Perhaps the term “temple du commerce” was a cover. During and after the
Revolution, church property was confiscated and used for public
purposes). It was finally given back to the Catholics in 1803.The church
underwent renovations in 1865 and 1866. It has been designated a
historical monument and is currently undergoing exterior renovations.
You can still admire beautiful stained glass inside.
At the “hotel” sign and
next street, turn left onto rue de la Verrerie (if you continued on
Saint-Martin, you would come to rue de Rivoli. On the corner of Verrerie
and Saint-Martin is a three-star hotel, that describes its décor
as Gothic. It is listed in the "Guide de Charme, Hôtels de Charme
de Paris".
An old fashioned bar and
hotel, aux Vieux Paris, remains at no. 72 rue de la Verrerie, that is a
peak at the past.
Continue straight ahead,
and once you reach rue de Renard, turn right and walk toward rue de Rivoli.
You will see Notre-Dame in the distance.
Walking toward rue de Rivoli,
let’s cross over to the Hôtel de Ville. This is the city hall of
the city of Paris, thus it houses administrative offices, a post office,
a museum and is the place of grand receptions. Each arrondissement also
has its own city hall.
The guillotine first made
its appearance in this plaza in 1792. A doctor who lived in the 6th designed
the guillotine. The machine was thought to be a more humane form of execution
than previously used.
The city hall is lined
with 107 statues representing people born in Paris; the 108th representation
is a non-Parisian. The thirty statues that top the hall represent the 30
provincial capitals of France; and the statue by the clock represents the
city of Paris. (At night because of the shadows, I noticed that children
think the statues move.)
L'Arche Marion
You are now on your way to Notre Dame and have reached the end of this
walk.
I hope it has been relaxing and romantic for you.
### Diversion no. 1
Saint-Eustache Church You can listen to the organ
and choir on Sundays at the 11:00 a.m. high mass. Otherwise, the church
has some beautiful stained glass and a creche to the memory of the merchants
of Les Halles.
Organ recitals on Sundays 5:30 p.m. (and
sometimes Thursday evening at 8:30 p.m.)
Telephone: 01 42 36 31 05/ 01 40 26 47 99
http://www.st-eustache.org/index.htm
For the history of Saint-Eustache (in
addition to the historical marker visit the church's link:
http://www.st-eustache.org/nav/histoire.htm
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Saint-Eustache
The increasing population
around the central market and the piety of a middle class individual, Jean
Alais, are at the foundation of a chapel consecrated in 1223. At the crossing
of the paths of Montmartre and Marée, the chapel became a parish
church and went through several enlargements before being replaced by the
actual church.
François 1st laid
the first stone on August 29, 1532 although construction and consecration
did not take place until April 26, 1637.
As part of Colbert parish,
Saint-Eustache should have received a new façade due to the generosity
of the minister of buildings, Mignard, but this was never accomplished. |
Diversion no. 2
Colonne Astrologique If you go all the way to
the Bourse-round building-you will see on the far side a tower. It was
built in the 1500s and is all that remains of Catherine de Médicis
house.
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Colonne
Astrologique
This column was probably
used as an observatory by the astrologists of Catherine de Médicis,
this column was part of a home built by Buillant between 1572 and 1584
and was connected with the queen’s apartments by a door on the first floor
(second floor American).
The next owner was Bourbon-Condé, comte
de Soissons, who in 1606 purchased, restored and occupied what was four
buildings on an estate that today would be bordered by the streets of Berger,
Vauvilliers, Coquillière (same street mentioned in Diversion no.
4) and Sauval.
His garden reached rue
du Louvre. It was transformed into a casino at the beginning of the 18th
century was demolished in 1748. |
Diversion no. 3
La Bourse de Commerce
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La Bourse de Commerce
After the destruction
of the Soissons house, the city of Paris built in its place a building
to store and sell wheat and flour.
Constructed by Le Camus de Mézières
between 1763 and 1766 in the form of a circle, its rotunda was topped off
by a curved, wood roof, conceived by Legrand and Molinos. The carpenter
Roubo assembled the roof. It contained 25 windows, including an additional
curved window at the top (bay window idea).
The roof burned on October
16, 1802 and was replaced in 1811 by an iron coupole. Once again a victim
of fire in 1854, this halle au blé was replaced by the actual Bourse
de Commerce constructed by Blondel between 1887 and 1899. |
Diversion no. 4
Kitchen wares
If you like to search out
cookware and utensils, the area around Etienne Marcel is the place.
The closest one that is
practically next to Saint-Eustache and the Bourse is E. Dehillerin at 18
& 20 rue Coquillière 75001 (01 42 36 53 13). ).
It is the green
building mixed in with the restaurants. ). The other stores are located
on rue Montmartre, the back side of St. Eustache. Many of these businesses
and the gourmet and every day foie gras/paté businesses are going
the way of clothing stores.
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Historical Markers
| Rue Montorgueil
intersection of Saint-Sauveur,
Bellan and Montorgueil
A major place for gastronomie
and commerce since the 18th century, this street marked the termination
of the voyage from the seas of the north. The oyster market of rue
Montorgueil was cut in two with the building of rue Etienne Marcel.
At no.59 stood between
1794 and 1845 the restaurant “Au Rocher de Cancale”, celebrated for its
seafood, immortalized in “la Comédie Humaine” by Balzac. The restaurant
was frequented by Honoré Balzac, Alexandre Dumas, Théophile
Gautier, Eugène Sue.
At nos.60-63 the caterer
“Au Rocher d’Etretat” held the sales office for the Société
des Huître d’Etretat et de Dieppe (Society of Oysters from Etretat
and Dieppe); the oysters from Fécamp were sold close to rue Tiquetonne
(close to rue Etienne-Marcel). |
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Rocher de Cancale
restaurant at the corner
of Greneta and Montorgueil
The second Rocher de Cancale
(Rock of Cancale) (Cancale is a town in Normandy east of St. Malo).
In 1846, the first “Rocher
de Cancale” established at no.59 de la rue Montorgueil was closed by Borel
who, his fortune made, had just turned around and purchased the celebrated
“Frascati” on rue Richelieu.
No. 78 across the street,
has been here since 1820 when an old wine merchant, Pécune, attentively
hastened to grab the prestigious name of the restaurant. The second “Rocher
+au Cancale” did not know the same success due to the success of “Philippe”,
close by at the “Compas d’Or”.
It is during the middle
of the 19th century that the veneer neoclassic-inspired décor on
the exterior was put in place on two floors in wood and plaster.
On the corner of the building
on rue Greneta (and rue Montorgueil) is the trademark for the restaurant
is sculpted: a rock protecting the shellfish.
Two room/salons on the
first floor demonstrate the décor attributed to the painter and
artist, Gavarni (1804-1866), who according to Edmond de Goncourt, painted
them in 1837, before the trademark was changed (no more details on this.)
Five octagonal panels have
been preserved (as of 1921, 14 were still visible). Painted in oil on plaster,
the themes represented are carnival gaiety, humorous individuals, garlands
and still life of fruit, fish and game (you can go upstairs and have a
look). |
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Patisserie Stohrer
51 rue Montorgueil
In 1725 at the time of
her marriage with Louis XV, Marie Leczynska, came to Paris with her entourage,
among them the pastry chef, Monsieur Stohrer. Five years later, Mr. Stohrer
moved into and opened on rue Montorgueil a pastry shop whose specialties
were going to be the “babas” and the “puits d’amour”.
Toward 1864, the shop was
decorated by the painter Paul Baudry (1828-1886), who had just attained
celebrity status with his decorations of the Hôtel Galliera and in
the entry of the Opéra. The apartment building from the end of the
18th century, has a curious bas relief mounted above its doorway:
a globe of the world surrounded by references to the Arts and Letters. |
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Les Halles
tucked into a corner near
the entrance to St. Eustache where the motorcycles are parked
As the city spread out,
the marché de la Grève became too crowded and in 1137, Louis
VI created a new market to the west of rue Saint-Denis. In 1181, Philippe
Auguste transferred the large public market of Saint-Lazare and commanded
the building of two long buildings called halls that were closed at night
so the merchants could store and sell their produce. A third hall was built
in 1265, followed by two fish halls.
The halls were remodeled
in a triangular design under Henri II (1519-1599) that lasted until the
Second Empire (Nov. 1852 to September 1870. Baltard constructed the iron
pavillions referred to in the writings of Zola. The end came in 1969 when
the central markets left Paris and moved to Rungis making way for the Forum
des Halls shopping center. |
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Fontaine des Innocents
Place Joachim du Bellay
The Cemetery of the Innocents,
the main cemetery of Paris, with more than two million tombs closed in
1785. The remains were transferred to the Catacombes. Since then the fountain
has changed location three times.
In the beginning, the fountain,
decorated between 1547 and 1550 by Jean Goujon, it stood at the angle of
rue Saint-Denis and rue Berger as part of the Church of Saints-Innocents
and had three sides.
After the destruction of
the church, the fountain was dismantled and moved to the center of the
market. Of course, it need a fourth side that Pajou provided and three
new nymph sculptures by Houdon. In 1865, it was once again dismantled and
moved to its present spot. |
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Rue de la Ferronnerie
on the other side of Arche
shoe store
Ravaillac assassinated
Henri IV on this street on Friday, May 14, 1610. Planning to watch, from
rue Saint-Denis, the preparations for the entry of Queen Marie de Médicis,
who had been crowned at the Basilica Saint-Denis on Sunday, the king left
the Louvre in his carriage with the leather curtains raised.
The king was stuck in a
traffic jam when two carts loaded with hay and with barrels of wine ran
into each other. The street was only four metres wide; the width was further
reduced by the small outdoor shops under awnings attached to the main buildings
(still used today around Paris). Ravaillac took advantage of the opportunity
to knife the king. Henri II had ordered the street’s widening in 1554;
however, it was not until 1669 that this work was accomplished to the measure
of 11 meters. |
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L'Arche Marion
Since its beginnings, doing the laundry
in Paris took place along the Seine. Toward the end of the Middle
Ages (8th –15th c.) the activity was organized with the introduction
of the first laundry boats.
Of limited size, the boats were simple
barges with a flat bottom, covered against the bad weather by planks
and thatched roofs.
Just before the Revolution about 80 barges were placed on the Right
Bank (Hôtel de Ville side) because they received better exposure to
the sun.
Closed down in 1805 under
the pretext that the barges interfered with the navigation, the laundry
boats would reappear even more numerous under the Restoration (1814-1830).
Finally, in order to compete with the industrial laundries, they increased
their capacity to the point of becoming floating cities.
The launderers worked close
to the edge of the water, protected by the canopies. On the level above,
were vast, covered rooms to hang the laundry to dry.
The most imposing of all
of them was the Marion Arch formed by 12 barges at a length of 200 metres,
moored between the Arcole Bridge and Notre Dame Bridge; two hundred fifty
people could work there. |
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November 2008