Every summer Paris turns a bit of itself into Paris-Plage (Paris Beach) when part of the Pompidou Expressway along the banks of the River Seine are cleard of traffic and a mad-made beach created with tons of sand to create a tropical island atmosphere in what is a noisy, fume-laden, congested major artery through the centre of Paris. This has proved very popular with Parisiens and visitors alike.
However from 6 July 2006 there is another reason to take your bikini to Paris - with the opening of the Piscine Josephine Baker, a swimming pool floating on the Seine! It all looks very moderm with plenty of deck space, a huge pool, café and gym etc - all moored on the Seine on the Quai de la Gare in the 13th Arondissement - just by the Bibliotheque Nationale - see map.
The pool is named after Josephine Baker a famous cabaret artiste from the USA who made her name in Paris with sensual and scantily-dressed (or scantily undressed) performances from the 1920s onwards. She reportedly appeared on one ocassion with a skirt made from 16 bananas strung together!
Whislt the dress code will be less formal than normal for Paris, I suspect any attempt to emulate Josephine will not be welcomed.
Interestingly this is not the first floating swimming pool on the Seine - the Piscine Deligny was built in 1805 but unfortunately sank in 1995.
For more info on the PIscine Josephine Baker - see www.mairie13.paris.fr
