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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 14, 2019 14:04:55 GMT
Even though I started in Paris, I spent very little time in the city before breaching the city limits. I had signed up for a boat trip leaving from the Parc de la Villette and I knew that it would take about two hours, but that's about all I knew. Of course I had already taken a boat for a short trip on this canal in the past, and I even walked along the canal from Paris all the way to Bobigny, this this was significantly farther. It seemed like it would be a pensioner's adventure, and I expected to see lots of white haired heads on the boat.
Anyway, I took a bike to the Pont de Crimée, because I decided that I should walk from the very start of the canal to the meeting point. For anybody with a vague knowledge of Paris, first there is the Canal Saint Martin which starts at the Seine. Then there is the Bassin de la Villette, which was the main industrial port, and once you pass that, the canal de l'Ourcq begins. I am intimately familiar with the area, because I lived on rue de l'Ourcq from 1979 to 1991.
So I arrived at Place de Bitche and saw that modifications were being made for the evening festivities.
i.postimg.cc/qqVp9m4W/Ourcq_019.jpg
Crowd control would be necessary for the firemen's ball.
i.postimg.cc/rFT8jYhr/Ourcq_020.jpg
Here is the fire station before its transformation into a disco.
i.postimg.cc/KcBGny5b/Ourcq_021.jpg
The firemen were busy setting up all of the barricades and other items.
i.postimg.cc/PJWdhmqJ/Ourcq_022.jpg
A podium for a DJ was on a pontoon on the canal.
i.postimg.cc/J4QR2cgd/Ourcq_023.jpg
Plenty of minor tasks to accomplish, but nothing looked like it was difficult. It was just busy work to keep the young firemen out of trouble.
i.postimg.cc/85r1X8Qh/Ourcq_024.jpg
i.postimg.cc/zDCNyFJX/Ourcq_026.jpg
I continued along the canal in the direction of the Parc de la Villette.
i.postimg.cc/cCSNDrcS/Ourcq_027.jpg
i.postimg.cc/nhcnb9fV/Ourcq_028.jpg
i.postimg.cc/4xLsJ4X6/Ourcq_029.jpg
not much happening on the canal for the moment
i.postimg.cc/TPKGh8PZ/Ourcq_030.jpg
Ah, here is the rendezvous point.
i.postimg.cc/cHYSMQwh/Ourcq_031.jpg
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 14, 2019 16:01:43 GMT
This is going to be fun! I love the pictures of the heavily painted canal boat. What time of day did the cruise take place? Somehow, at the beginning of the report, I was imagining it as a night event. No?
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Post by mossie on Jul 14, 2019 16:21:17 GMT
I shall be interested to see more of this because it is something I had considered doing
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 14, 2019 20:02:35 GMT
What time of day did the cruise take place? This particular cruise takes place on Saturdays at 10:00. The shorter cruise which I have done twice in the past runs every Saturday and Sunday in July and August from about noon to 20:00. The short one has a symbolic price -- 1 euro on Saturday and 2 euros on Sunday, children free (maximum 2 children per adult).
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 14, 2019 21:48:50 GMT
That music on the video is perfect for your lovely presentation of floating down the canal.
Of course lots of what is along the canal can be seen from the paths alongside, but it seems the perspective from the water is a much better view.
Could you tell if the new apartment buildings were well populated? It would seem that the waterside location with all those windows would make them very desirable.
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 14, 2019 21:56:26 GMT
The guide said that property values in that area had risen from 4000 euros per square metre to 7500 euros per square metre. In terms of rent, a 100m² flat (the size of a quite adequate 2-bedroom apartment) is about 900 euros a month. That's still at least 500 euros cheaper than a similar place in Paris.
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Post by lagatta on Jul 14, 2019 23:13:48 GMT
I presume there are nearby amenities such as groceries and public transport - you've shown the expansion of public transport in that area.
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 15, 2019 6:42:46 GMT
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 15, 2019 14:07:36 GMT
Ah, there is more! I went back to the beginning & now realize that this is quite a long cruise. But is the short cruise really eight hours long?!
That new construction is so new it looks like the architect's rendering. Will this be suburban area, or part of a city?
The water sports area would give me pause if I were looking to live around there. It must be pretty noisy.
Interesting about the original use of the canal.
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 15, 2019 15:20:23 GMT
The short trip from Paris to Bobigny is only an hour. My own trip was 2 hours. Actually it took us almost two and a half hours because the one and only lock on the canal de l'Ourcq was closed when it was supposed to be open. So we had to wait for it to empty out, then for us to get in, and then for the lock to fill up again. The locks inside Paris are much faster, but since the boat I was on was the only boat to be using the lock on that day, there is no reason to have an "efficient" lock. One of the things that was explained on the trip was that the Canal Saint Martin, the Canal Saint Denis and the Canal de l'Ourcq are all property of the city of Paris and are maintained by the city. Obviously things are much more relaxed now but in the 19th century, the people from the outer cities were punished or even imprisoned if they were caught stealing water from those canals.
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 15, 2019 15:34:52 GMT
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Post by cheerypeabrain on Jul 15, 2019 16:43:12 GMT
Lovely trees . Splendid trip, I do love a river cruise...
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 15, 2019 16:51:58 GMT
But is the short cruise really eight hours long?! I realise that I was not completely clear about that. There is a departure every 40 minutes between 12:00 and 20:00. They use a lot of boats because these cruises are extremely popular for families with limited means, which is why the fare has been set so low.
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 15, 2019 16:57:11 GMT
Thanks. I sort of figured that out after your last answer. That is lovely that the fare is kept low so lots of people can enjoy the trip. Love the country-like scenes you're showing. Your picture of the signs for bikes reminded me of this. Signage is good!
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 15, 2019 17:14:10 GMT
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 15, 2019 18:00:11 GMT
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 15, 2019 19:22:47 GMT
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Post by lugg on Jul 15, 2019 19:40:54 GMT
Super report K2 .I think it is really interesting to see how various countries have utilised what are/ were almost defunct canals ( as in their original purpose) tourism / cycling/ horse riding / walking etc. and how even in the most industrial of areas they introduce a level of nature. I am most familiar with the canals in Birmingham which have become routes into the city again for walkers and cyclists. I know that in some countries they are still major transport routes for freight but not so in UK. There is a really lovely TV programme on UK TV called Great Canal Journeys which explores waterways in various locations across the world . www.channel4.com/programmes/great-canal-journeys
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 15, 2019 21:13:18 GMT
So wonderful to be out in all that greenery. Ditto to what Lugg says about utilization of canals. The video is lovely -- the mommy & baby ducks! -- and it was perfect seeing the two women walking along just enjoying nature. Some of the pictures could be from 100 years ago.
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 16, 2019 11:41:32 GMT
It was a fascinating day and a place of which I had never heard. People are wrong to bad mouth the Paris suburbs.
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 16, 2019 14:44:10 GMT
Did you learn how they turn the boat around? Or is it arranged so that it can be driven from either end?
Parts of that forest seem quite Hansel&Gretel-y. How amazing to step out from the heart of Paris onto a slow boat & wind up in a forest a couple of hours later. I assume the forest is protected from building and other development. Do you know who administrates it? I looked up "poudrerie" and one definition was a mill where gunpowder is made from sulfur, saltpeter and charcoal. Perhaps there was once such a place nearby? At any rate, how lovely to have access to such a natural place. I went to the forest in Amsterdam, & it seemed a similar miracle.
Thanks for taking us down a lazy river canal with you -- very enjoyable narrative and wonderful views.
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 16, 2019 15:10:10 GMT
There is in fact a "cartoucherie" in the middle of the forest where the explosives were made. I'm sure that after a number of accidents, they learned to put these places in the middle of nowhere for safety. The boat could not go in both directions. The Google satellite view shows an area that spreads out a bit about 100 metres further. Maybe there? i450.photobucket.com/albums/qq228/kerouac2/banlieue/turnaround.jpg
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