For the first time in over a century, Parisians and tourists will be able to take a refreshing dip in the River Seine. The long-polluted waterway is finally opening up as a summertime swim spot following a 1.4 billion euro ($1.5 billion) cleanup project that made it suitable for Olympic competitions last year.
Three new swimming sites on the Paris riverbank will open on Saturday — one close to Paris’ Notre Dame Cathedral, another near the Eiffel Tower and a third in eastern Paris.
Swimming in the Seine has been illegal since 1923, with a few exceptions, due to pollution and risks posed by river navigation. Taking a dip outside bathing areas is still banned for safety reasons.
And this is why while while everyone was bitching about how much money this will cost i was just thinking about how nice it will be when you can finally swim in it again. Of course there is a lot of long term infrastructure that needs to be built so big rains dont flush all the shit into it but still good news. It was also smart of the mayor to do this “for” the olympics.