PARIS - Eastern inner suburbs, walk along the Marne river

[Minato Ku]

The Marne is one of the main river in Paris area. It merges with the Seine just east of the city limits in the eastern inner suburbs.
Fewer industries have settle along the Marne river compared with the Seine and its banks are quite leafy and more residencial.

This walk begin at Joinville-Le-Pont on narrowest part of Saint Maur peninsula, a peninsula formed by the winding path of the Marne river.
In 1825 a canal was built linking both sides of the peninsula, almost making Saint-Maur an island but this canal is underground.


Saint-Maur by Minato ku, sur Flickr

1. Rue de Paris in the municipality of Joinville-le-Pont

Rue de Paris, Joinville-le-Pont by Minato ku, sur Flickr
2. I stand above the underground canal.
The small old building has been demolished since I've taken this picture.

Président John Fitzgerald Kennedy, Joinville-le-Pont by Minato ku, sur Flickr
3. A view back on Rue de Paris.

Rue de Paris, Joinville-le-Pont by Minato ku, sur Flickr
4. This is where the under canal emerges.

Quai du Barrage, Joinville-le-Pont by Minato ku, sur Flickr
5. This 500m long canal creates a very convenient shortcut, avoiding a 12.5 km (7.8 miles) ride around Saint-Maur.

Canal de Saint-Maur, Joinville-le-Pont by Minato ku, sur Flickr
6. Waliking toward the north

Quai Pierre Brossolette, Quai Pierre Brossolette Joinville-le-Pont by Minato ku, sur Flickr
7. Under Joinville bridge. The name of the municipality is name after the bridge. (pont = bridge).

Pont de Joinville, Joinville-le-Pont by Minato ku, sur Flickr
8.

Quai de la Marne, Joinville-le-Pont by Minato ku, sur Flickr
9.

Quai de la Marne, Joinville-le-Pont by Minato ku, sur Flickr
10.

Quai de la Marne, Joinville-le-Pont by Minato ku, sur Flickr
11. Marne river banks are a mix of townhouses and small residential multi-storey buildings.

Quai de la Marne, Joinville-le-Pont by Minato ku, sur Flickr
12.

Quai de la Marne, Joinville-le-Pont by Minato ku, sur Flickr
13.

Quai de la Marne, Joinville-le-Pont by Minato ku, sur Flickr
14. Under the A4/A86 freeway bridge. A4 is the freeway linking Paris to the East of France and A86 is Paris' second beltway.

Viaduc de Joinville, Joinville-le-Pont by Minato ku, sur Flickr
15.

Quai de la Marne, Joinville-le-Pont by Minato ku, sur Flickr
16.

Boulevard de la Marne, Nogent-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
17. Pavillon Baltard in Nogent-sur-Marne.
It is one of the few remaining part of the former Les Halles market in Central Paris. It has been sent here and serves as a convention center.

18. In this part of Nogent-sur-Marne, the bank of the Marne river are privatized. It's the gardens of large residences.

Yvette Horner-Île de Beauté, Nogent-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
Boulevard de la Marne, Nogent-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
19.

Yvette Horner-Île de Beauté, Nogent-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
20. A lot of privacy there

Yvette Horner-Île de Beauté, Nogent-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
21.

Yvette Horner-Île de Beauté, Nogent-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
22. A swimming pool with hotel and restaurants.
The bank of Marne were very popular for leisure trips in the end of the 19th beginning of the 20th century. Just of short ride from Paris.

Île de Beauté, Nogent-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
23.

Place Maurice Chevalier, Nogent-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
24.

Place des Arts, Nogent-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
25.

Promenade de Siegburg, Nogent-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
26. A small marina

Place des Arts, Nogent-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
27. The tall Nogent-sur-Marne Viaduct.
Built in 1856 and 1945. A part was bombed by during WW2.

Quai du Port, Nogent-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
28.

Rue Latérale au Viaduc, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
29. Le Perreux-sur-Marne

Quai de l'Artois, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
30. Notice the former bike workshop that is being demolished. It looks like it burned.
Anyway even without a disaster, its fate was to be replaced by a residential development as in many Paris suburbs.

Quai de l'Artois, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
31.

Quai de l'Artois, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
32.

Quai de l'Artois, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
33.

Quai de l'Artois, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
34. Bry-sur-Marne on the oppiste side of the river

Quai de l'Artois, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
35. Older mansion

Quai de l'Artois, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
36.

Quai de l'Artois, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
37.

Quai de Champagne, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
38.

Quai de l'Artois, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
39.

Quai de Champagne, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
40.

Quai de Champagne, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
41.

Quai de Champagne, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
42. Bry pedestrial bridge. It was built by Gustave Eiffel in 1894

Passerelle de Bry, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
43.

Quai d'Argonne, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
44.

Quai d'Argonne, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
45.

Quai d'Argonne, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
46. Neuilly-Plaisance viaduct. Built in 1977 for the RER A. I

Promenade André Devambez, Neuilly-Plaisance by Minato ku, sur Flickr
47.

Promenade André Devambez, Neuilly-Plaisance by Minato ku, sur Flickr
48. A small market around railway the viaduct

Boulevard Gallieni, Neuilly-Plaisance by Minato ku, sur Flickr
49. The busy Boulevard Gallieni, national road N34

Boulevard Gallieni, Neuilly-Plaisance by Minato ku, sur Flickr
50. Toward the east

Boulevard Gallieni, Neuilly-Plaisance by Minato ku, sur Flickr
51. Toward the west

Boulevard Gallieni, Neuilly-Plaisance by Minato ku, sur Flickr
52. Neuilly Plaisance RER station.
The station opened in 1977. The station had about 11 millions passengers in 2018.

Boulevard Gallieni, Neuilly-Plaisance by Minato ku, sur Flickr
53.

Gare de Neuilly-Plaisance, RER A by Minato ku, sur Flickr
54.

Boulevard Gallieni, Neuilly-Plaisance by Minato ku, sur Flickr

It's not visible in picture 50 but Boulevard Gallieni isn't as urban as it seems.
Notice the small suburban mall with its surface parkings.
I wonder how long this surface will stay before being used for housing developments as you could notice all around.

Noisy-Plaisance RER by Minato ku, sur Flickr

[EastSideHBG]

Lovely!

[mousquet]

Houses like these were like a standard of the local bourgeoisie from the 1880s to the 1910s over the region.

Originally Posted by Minato Ku

35. Older mansion

Quai de l'Artois, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr
36.

Quai de l'Artois, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr

There are quite loads of them in the residential neighborhoods of the suburbs. They're often hidden by fences to ensure privacy, but when you get in their yards, you feel pleased cause they're most often pretty. They were built in a material called "pierre meulière", some kind of stone (looks like they call it gritstone in English) that was widespread in the late 19th century. Again, it makes up pretty houses and buildings.

I don't think all would qualify as so called mansions, far from there. It only depends on how large they are. Some are really roomy indeed and those are sometimes called villas.
You find plenty of them in the affluent outer western suburbs of Yvelines and they're not affordable.
Although there are sometimes bargains to be made if you buy one in a poor shape, but then of course, the cost of renovation makes it more expensive anyway.

[ChrisLA]

I like it, the city of Paris is nice to visit but if I had to live there I think I would rather reside in the area/neighborhood you took photos of. I’m thinking it is probably a lot cleaner and you get more living space for the money?

[mousquet]

Originally Posted by ChrisLA

I like it, the city of Paris is nice to visit but if I had to live there I think I would rather reside in the area/neighborhood you took photos of. I’m thinking it is probably a lot cleaner and you get more living space for the money?

It all depends on your personal expectations and way of life.

For instance, I grew up in the roomy western burbs in a comfy house, then I moved to the inner city at age 18 in a tiny studio that was hardly larger than the bedroom I had as a kid and found it awesome when I was all young. Urban density is vibrant and exciting to youngsters.
But once you have to pay the rent on your own, with no help from your parents, things are different. You must grow more responsible and find some stuff that fits what you can afford.

Often, once you have kids or grow older, you don't find the central city so convenient. It's expensive, you need room for your kids, people partying all week long down in the streets below your windows wake you up at night... There are things like these that you end up finding annoying.

That's why a lot of people change their minds at some point and would rather buy something in the quieter and less expensive suburbs.
Surveys show that a (short) majority of the French people like to live in single-family homes for that kind of reasons. It's something like 40 vs 60%.

By the way, not all neighborhoods of central Paris lack cleanliness. In fact, most west of the Louvre are run by the right wing that's very fussy when it comes to it in the streets and all. But they're also the most exclusive and unaffordable.

[geomorph]

Originally Posted by Minato Ku

44.

Quai d'Argonne, Le Perreux-sur-Marne by Minato ku, sur Flickr

Any idea what this modern building is on the left?

[Minato Ku]

"Centre des bords de Marne"
It's a cultural center with a cinema theatre and rooms for music, theater and dance shows.

[Coldrsx]

A wonderful tour, thanks! I have been trying to take transit further afar when I visit to explore some cool non-tourist areas/neighbourhoods.