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Paris France Guide Tours Night in Paris Paris HotelsParis : Few words evoke more emotion and promise than this one. Paris, the capital of France, the northern border of the Latin spirit. Paris, where the clichés are so potent that they ultimately become the real thing. Paris—briefly challenged in the early 1990s by Prague as the world’s finest hangout for English-speakers looking for high-quality lifestyles—has never lost, and will never lose, its place in the world as the Capital of Sophistication and the Hormonal City-State of Desire. It is here that you can best contemplate what it is you want from life. |
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 Here is a simple map of all the main monuments in Paris France that will let you organize your journey from the Eiffel Tour to the Gare de Lyon to Vers Villepinte. |
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 Gauls of the Parisii tribe settled in Paris between 250 and 200 BC and founded a fishing village on an island in the river that is today Ile de la Cité which is the center around which Paris developed. Aged more than 2,000 years old and known as Lutetia (Lutece) in ancient times, Paris was conquered by Julius Caesar in 52 BC and existed as a regional center under the Romans and in the early Middle Ages. The Count of Paris, Hugh Capet, became King of France in 987. And under his successors, the Capetians, the city's position as the nation's capital was established. In 1355-58, the people of Paris first declared themselves an independent commune under the leadership of Etienne Marcel. During the French Revolution, the storming of the Bastille in 1789 was the first of a series of key actions by the Parisian people. Paris also played an important role in the revolutions of 1830 and 1848. Later in 1871, the city was besieged for four months until France surrendered during the Franco-Prussian War. French radicals briefly established the Commune of Paris after German troops withdrew. During the World `War I, the Germans were prevented from reaching Paris, but in World War II from 1940 to 1944, they occupied the city. Today, though Paris's appearance is being transformed by structures such as the Beaubourg and by the ambitious "grands projets" building program carried out under the presidency of Françoise Mitterrand, Paris still maintains its importance, character and unique charm. |
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 The most exquisite of Paris' Gothic gems, Sainte Chapelle is tucked away within the walls of the Palais de Justice. The chapel is illuminated by a veritable curtain of luminous 13th-century stained glass (the oldest and finest in Paris). Consecrated in 1248, Sainte Chapelle was built to house what was believed to be Jesus' crown of thorns and other relics purchased by King Louis IX. The chapel's exterior can be viewed from across the street, from the law courts' magnificently gilded 18th-century gate, which faces Rue de Lutèce. |
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 Place des Vosges In 1605, King Henry IV decided to transform the Marais district into a residential area for Parisian aristocrats by building Place des Vosges and arraying 36 symmetrical houses around its square perimeter. The arcades around the place are today occupied by expensive galleries and shops, as well as cafés filled with people drinking little cups of coffee and air-kissing immaculate passersby. |
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 Musée du Louvre is a must visit if you have even the merest interest in the fruits of human civilization from antiquity to the 19th century. The most famous works from antiquity include the Seated Scribe, the Jewels of Rameses II and the armless duo - the Winged Victory of Samothrace and the Venus de Milo. From the Renaissance, don't miss Michelangelo's Slaves, Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa and works by Raphael, Botticelli and Titian. French masterpieces of the 19th century include Ingres' La Grande Odalisque, Géricault's The Raft of the Medusa and the work of David and Delacroix. |
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 The spectacular Musée d'Orsay displays France's national collection of paintings, sculptures, objects of arts and other works produced in 1848-1914, including the fruits of the impressionist, postimpressionist and art nouveau movements. |
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 Eiffel Tower was once the world's tallest structure at 320m (1050ft) until Manhattan's Chrysler Building was completed, built for the 1889 Exposition Universelle (World Fair), held to commemorate the centennial of the Revolution. |
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 Cimetière du Père Lachaise's 70,000 ornate tombs form a verdant, open-air sculpture garden, founded in 1804. Among its resting residents are famous composers, writers, artists, actors, singers, dancers, and even the immortal 12th-century lovers Abélard and Héloïse. Here you are to find one of the most popular graves - of rock star Jim Morrison of the Doors. Labels: Cimetière du Père Lachaise |
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 Known as Beaubourg, the Pompidou Centre is all about modern and contemporary 20th-century art. It has become the most visited cultural sight in Paris with two floors dedicated to exhibit some of the 40,000-plus works of the Musée Nationale d'Art Moderne, France's national collection of 20th-century art and the top floors offering a magnificent view of Paris. Labels: Pompidou |
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 If Paris has a heart, then Cathédrale Notre Dame is its. Notre Dame de Paris is not only a masterpiece of French Gothic architecture, but has also been Catholic Paris' ceremonial focus for seven centuries. The cathedral's immense interior, a marvel of medieval engineering, holds over 6000 people and has spectacular rose windows. |
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 In 1785, Paris decided to solve the problem of its overflowing cemeteries by exhuming the bones of the buried and relocate them in the tunnels of several disused quarries, leading to the creation of the Catacombes. Visitors to this attraction will find themselves 20m (65ft) underground, working their way along corridors stacked with bones. |
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 The modestly sized Bois de Boulogne, on the western edge of the city, is endowed with forested areas, meandering paths, belle époque cafes and little wells of naughtiness. |
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 The Arc de Triomphe is the world's largest traffic roundabout and the meeting point of 12 avenues. In 1806, it was commissioned by Napoleon to commemorate his imperial victories, but remained unfinished until 1836. Today, France's national remembrance service is held here annually on November 11th. |
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