Camille Jullian square

An essential part of Bordeaux’s social life, Camille Jullian Square and Pas Saint-Georges street are very popular with students and artists. Host to craft shops, bars and café terraces, it’s a lively neighbourhood always bustling with activity, and a great place to explore! Can you see Utopia cinema on Saint-Simon street? It’s actually a decommissioned church that was squatted and then refurbished. Before being converted into a cinema, it was a canning factory, where, according to legend, the sardine can opener was invented. Prior to that, it had a completely different, even more absurd, use. It served as a naval school for the young orphans of Bordeaux! As crazy as it may seem, the church was occupied by a reconstructed frigate, with its main mast touching the top of the nave!! The young sailors lived on-site, sleeping in hammocks. Don’t hesitate to enter its charming little courtyard. Utopia cinemas are independent art house cinemas that pride themselves on their independent approach. The square pays tribute to historian Camille Jullian, who was a professor at Bordeaux University. The monument in the centre of the square, made of ancient stones found in 1921 and belonging to the ancient walls of the Roman city, was erected in his honour and in memory of his profession.