Paris Tourism & Travel Guide - Places to see in Paris

Paris Tour & Travel Guide - Places to See in Paris

The Eiffel Tower

What new does one say about a structure that is a global institution, is the most visited (paid) monument in the world, and is recognized even by little children looking at its picture in their school books in Africa, Asia and South America. Well, maybe the fact that it was sold (almost twice) by a clever man called Victor Lustig. In 1925, after reading a newspaper report on the tower and how difficult it was for the city to maintain it, young Victor hatched a plan and invited six scrap dealers to a confidential meeting. There he introduced himself as the Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Telegraph and Posts and told them that the city could no longer pay for the upkeep of the tower and wanted to tear it down. Insisting that there would surely be a huge outcry if word got out before an official announcement by the government, Victor swore them to secrecy. Later, after getting them to file bids, he zeroed upon an insecure dealer – Andre Poisson – and after collecting the money fled to Vienna. When Poisson realized he had been conned, he chose to keep silent, too humiliated to even go to the police. A few weeks later, Lustig again invited six dealers and sold the Eiffel tower again, but this time the chosen victim approached the police before the deal could be closed and Victor had to flee to America. Victor was apprehended in 1935 for a counterfeiting case and sentenced to Alcatraz prison. He died in 1947, alone and suffering, but history will always remember him as one of the greatest conman who sold one of the world’s greatest monuments, twice. 324 metres high, the Eiffel Tower is the tallest structure in the Paris region. It has 3 levels for visitor. The first two can be ascended by lift or stairs, and both have restaurants where you can stop by for a bite while watching over the entire city. The third level can only be reached by an elevator. Almost 200 million people have visited this celebrated monument since it’s construction in 1889, and it is the most prominent symbol of both Paris and France often seen in the introductory shots of films set in the city.

Musée du Louvre

Originally built as a defense fortress by King Phillipe Auguste, the Palais de louvre was later converted into a palace and was the residence of royalty for quite sometime before the royal court moved to Versailles in 1678. By 1739, it became a museum, and today it is unquestionably one of the finest art galleries in the world. Home to thousands of classic and modern masterpieces, the Louvre is the jewel in the crown of French culture, and in its magnificence lies passages into Europe’s history that is rich, memorable and well worth assimilating. While beforehand most people might just have heard of the three great ladies – the Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo and the Victory of Samothrace - but visit the museum once and you will be exposed to the most breathtaking art collection that you could ever find. Louvre has an approximate 35,000 art items and its permanent collection includes masterpieces by European masters such as Da Vinci, Delacroix, Vermeer, and Rubens, as well as unsurpassed Greco-Roman, Egyptian, or Islamic arts collections. Visit the majestic place if you like or appreciate art, and you might be surprised to find emotions suddenly flying all around your soul and making you the Louvre’s seduced captive.

Cathédrale de Notre Dame de Paris:

Cathédrale de Notre Dame de Paris is literally the centrifugal point of Paris as all distances from Paris to other parts of metropolitan France are measured from the square at Notre Dame. A bronze star, set in the pavement close to the main entrance, denotes the exact location of point zero , or point zéro des routes de France as the French call it. Over 10 million people visit Notre Dame each year. Besides being a masterpiece of French Gothic architecture, the Cathedral has also been the focus of Catholic Paris for many centuries. No trip to Paris can be complete without visiting this historic site and it truly is the heartbeat of the French capital.

La Seine river

Flowing through the city of Paris, the river Seine is the geographical divider of the city. In the day, the river looks over her beloved Paris – the Eiffel Tower and the Orsay Museum on the southern end, the Louvre, Grand Palais on the north and the Notre Dame Cathedral near the middle. After dusk, it glimmers in the moonlight, the overlooking monuments leaving long, majestic reflections in that lovely hue of rippling black and gold water. A majestic water body, has the aura and soul to make people forget; lose themselves in their companions, in their thoughts, in the environment, and the Seine is no different. Hundreds of Parisians stroll along its banks every day, and under her unconscious influence, rediscover themselves and each other. It really is a must-visit.

Arc De Triomphe

One of the most famous monuments in Paris, the Arc De Triomphe lies at the western end of the Champs-Elysees. Commissioned by Napolean in 1806, it honours all those who fought and died for France, especially in the Napoleanic wars. On its inner and outer surfaces are inscribed the names of all French victories and generals. Beneath the arc’s colossal structure, there lies a vault that contains the tomb of the unknown soldier from World War I. So massive is the monument, that at the of the World War in 1919, in a mark of honour to those who fought during the war, French aviator Charles Godefroy flew his Nieuport plane through the Arc De Triomphe

Museums and Monuments

Paris’ chest of treasures does not however end here. There are several other wonderful sights for art lovers, a prominent one being the Musée d’Orsay. Housed in a former train station, it displays France’s national collection of paintings, sculptures and other works produced between 1840 and 1914, including those of the Impressionist, post-Impressionist and art nouveau movements. One can also visit Saint Chapelle and the Basilica of the Sacred Heart (Basilique du Sacre Couer), the former being an exquisite Gothic monument with fine stain glass – and the latter having a spectacular panaroma once you climb the 234 steps to its dome.

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