Les Ecluses du Temple

Another trip to one of my favorite neighborhoods in Paris yielded an unexpected delight.  I was walking back to the métro station with friend and, out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of something that reminded me of my old neighborhood in Tokyo.  We had some time so we took a detour and, lo and behold, there it was - a canal cached behind a park.

This is the Canal Saint Martin which was constructed between 1805 and 1825 and connects the Seine with the Bassin de la Villette.  Much of the canal is completely covered but it very discreetly comes out into the open air close to the Place de La République. There are no fewer than 9 écluses (locks) on this 4.5 kilometer canal and the ones I saw (called the Ecluses du Temple) were the loveliest sight I'd seen in Paris in years.  You can read more about it at the Mayor's website here which proposes a stroll along the canal to discover:

Son " atmosphère " particulière, ses mystérieuses voûtes souterraines, la poésie dégagée par cette voie  d'eau bordée de marronniers et de platanes plus que centenaires, ponctuée de passerelles romantiques... (It's particular atmosphere, it's mysterious subterranean vaults, the poetry inspired by this waterway lined with chestnuts and platanes over a hundred years old, marked by romantics passageways...)

Here are a few pictures that I managed to take with my camarade's camera (naturally I had left mine at home).  Un grand merci à Sanae pour cette matinée à la fois productive et pleine de découverte....