HOTEL DE VILLE scheduled BATOBUS STOP

 

Once, instead of there being a quay here, there was a sandy bank or "grève" leading down to the Seine from the Place de l'Hôtel de Ville. This square, called "La Grève" until the nineteenth century, was once the scene of executions and later, the site where day laborers were hired by the boatmen of the Seine. Those who didn't find work complained about it, or "faisaient la grève" here. "Grève" thus became, and still is the French word for strike. This port of call takes you into an historic and fascinating part of the city. The Marais, Saint-Paul and Saint-Gervais are protected areas where magnificent old buildings line the last tortuous and cobblestoned streets of Paris. Less nostalgic but in the same general area are the Pompidou Center, the Picasso Museum, fashionable boutiques, a variety of exciting cafés and bars, and the lively atmosphere of what is called, the Jewish quarter, all giving the Hôtel-de-Ville port a modern flavor as well.