South of the Rue de Bretagne, the streets become more convoluted and narrower than in the Temple Quartier situated in the northern part of the Marais. The architecture also is more modest and the roof-lines lower. Tiny one and two-star hotels dot the back streets catering mainly to truly “gay” Parisians, and the cafés lining the Rue des Archives are usually bustling with a mixed crowd of artists and members of the gay community, or both – well into the night.

On the Rue Charlot, the Hôtel Retz (“Retz Mansion”), one of the mansions of the Marais, is now the Passage de Retz given over to art shows. The Musée Picasso (“Picasso Museum”) is located on the corner of the Rue des Coutures St. Gervais, just off the Place de Thorigny. The Musée Carnavalet, Paris’ own smaller version of the Smithsonian, is farther south still, on the Rue de Sevigny, next to the Lycée Victor Hugo.

As modest as the quartier’s smaller streets are, with their misshapen, bulging beam and wattle houses, evidence of great wealth abounds: the private hôtels (mansions) along the Rue du Temple date from the 17th century and are in a remarkable state of repair. Everywhere, efforts have been made to preserve the quartier's history: old shop fronts and stone-work have been cleaned and restored giving the entire area an expensive, antiqued look. Some places never change however, as a trip into the Ruelle Sourdis, off the Rue Pastourelle will prove: Practically nothing has been altered here since the street was constructed in the 16th century.