Paris

Paris is the capital city of France, as well as the capital of the Île-de-France région, whose territory encompasses Paris and its suburbs. The city of Paris proper is also a département, called Paris département (French: département de Paris). It is a wonderful city for aimless wandering of which features a wide variety of style and décor and boasts a wide assortment of entertainment to satisfy even the most benign of tastes.

Cultural Centres and Organisations

Monuments and Landmarks

• The Eiffel Tower - a "temporary" construction of Gustave Eiffel for the 1889 Universal Exposition
• Arc de Triomphe - monument at the center of the Place de l'Étoile, commemorating the victories of France and honoring those who died in battle.
• Les Invalides - museum and burial place of many great French soldiers, including Napoleon.
• The Conciergerie - medieval building; former prison where some prominent members of the ancien régime stayed before their death during the French Revolution
• Palais Garnier - Paris' central opera built in the later Second Empire period.
• Cathedral of Notre Dame on the Île de la Cité - Paris' 12th-century ecclesiastical centrepiece
• The Sorbonne - the University of Paris, the centre of Paris' Latin Quarter
• Statue of Liberty - a smaller version of the New York City harbor statue which France gave to the United States in 1886, located on the Île des Cygnes on the Seine. Another version is in the Luxembourg Garden.
• The Panthéon - beautiful church and tomb of a number of France's illustrious men and women
• Sainte-Chapelle - 13th century Gothic palace chapel.
• Église de la Madeleine
• Place des Vosges - square in the Marais district laid out by Henry IV
• Flame of Liberty public co-opted temporary memorial for Diana, Princess of Wales
• The Wallace fountains, spread throughout the city.
• The Grand Palais - a large glass exhibition hall built for the 1900 Paris Exhibition.

Museums

See also: List of museums in Paris

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• Louvre - a huge museum housing many works of art, including the Mona Lisa (La Joconde) and the Venus de Milo statue.
• Musée d'Orsay - an art museum housed in a converted 19th century railway station, which contains mainly Impressionist works.
• Centre Georges Pompidou, also known as Beaubourg - houses the Musée National d'Art Moderne and a cultural center with a large public library. Famous for its external skeleton of service pipes.
• Musée Rodin - a large collection of works by France's most famous sculptor
• Musée du Montparnasse in the former residence of artist Marie Vassilieff at 21 Avenue du Maine, details the history of the great artistic community of Montparnasse.
• Musée Cluny, also known as the Musée National du Moyen-Age, houses a large collection of art and artifacts from the Middle Ages, including the tapestry cycle The Lady and the Unicorn.
• Musée Picasso, exhibits nearly 3000 pieces of art by Pablo Picasso as well as art from his own personal collection including works by Cézanne and Matisse.

Historical Centres

• Montmartre - historic area on the Butte, home to the Basilica of the Sacré Coeur and also famous for the studios and cafés of many great artists.
• Champs-Élysées - a 17th-century garden promenade turned Avenue connection between the Concorde and Arc de Triomphe.
• Place de la Concorde - at the foot of the Champs-Élysées, built as the "Place Louis XV" site of the infamous guillotine. The Egyptian obleisk it holds today can be considered Paris' "oldest monument".
• Place de la Bastille - Former eastern stronghold and gate of Paris.
• Montparnasse - historic area on the Left Bank, famous for the its artists studios, music-halls, and café life.
• Quartier Latin - Paris' scholastic center from the 12th century, formerly stratching between the Left Bank's place Maubert and the Sorbonne university.

Cemetaries

• Père Lachaise Cemetery - Many of Paris' illustrious history have found rest here.
• Cimetière de Montmartre
• Cimetière du Montparnasse
• Cimetière de Passy
• Catacombs of Paris

Gardens

See also: List of parks and gardens in Paris

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• Luxembourg - a joining of gardens formerly belonging to a coverntry and a Chateau built for Marie de' Medici
• Montsouris - One of three vast gardens created during the Second Empire to Paris' outskirts.
• Buttes-Chaumont - see above
• Parc Monceau - one of the above, but the former folie de Chartres
• Bois de Boulogne - to Paris' western perimetre, redesigned during the Second Empire
• Bois de Vincennes - same as above, but to a lesser degree.

Commercial Districts

• Les Halles - shopping precinct around an important metro connection station.
• Le Marais - trendy district on the Right Bank with large gay and Jewish populations
• l'Opéra - Holds many of Paris' largest departement stores such as Printemps and Galeries Lafayette

Boutiques, department stores and hotels

• Gastronomical Establishments
• Fauchon
• Berthillon ice cream
• Department stores
• Galeries Lafayette
• Printemps
• Famous hotels:
• Hôtel de Crillon, Place de la Concorde
• Hôtel George V, Avenue Georges V
• Hôtel Ritz Paris, Place Vendôme

Night life

• Le Lido - cabaret on the Champs-Élysées famous for its exotic shows and where, as an American GI on leave with some army friends, Elvis Presley gave an impromptu concert.
• Bal du Moulin Rouge, Le Crazy Horse Saloon, the Paris Olympia, Folies Bergères, Bobino - famous nightclubs.
• The Buddha Bar, Barfly, Hotel Costes, Georges - trendy upscale restaurant / bars to see and be seen.
• The Rex Club, Le Tryptique, Le Batofar- good places for electro music (techno, electro-rock, D&B).

Sports clubs

Paris's main sports clubs are

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Paris Saint-Germain, Football (soccer) club, Paris Basket Racing, Basketball team and Stade Français, Rugby union club.

Related Topics:
Paris Saint-Germain - Football (soccer) - Paris Basket Racing - Basketball - Stade Français - Rugby union

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