|
The City - Paris |
[Introduction] [Paris] [Tourist Attractions] [Sightseeing Tours] [Excursions outside Paris]
 |
No
one is at a loss of words to describe Paris, but everything to be said
seems a cliché. |
[top]
Both the capital of the nation and the historic Île de France region, Paris is located in north central France and often called the City of Lights.
The
River Seine bisects the city centre -known as Intra-Muros -within the walls
-. The area north of the river, the Rive Droite (Right Bank), includes the tree-lined
Avenue des Champs-Élysées, running west to the Arc de Triomphe.
East of the avenue is the massive Musée du Louvre, the Centre Georges
Pompidou and a lively district of museums, shops, markets and restaurants. Immediately
south of the Pompidou Centre on the Île de la Cité is the world-famous
hunchback hangout, Notre Dame.
The area south of the river, the Rive Gauche (Left Bank), is home to the city's
most prominent landmark, the Eiffel Tower. To the east, in the Saint Germain
de Prés and Montparnasse districts, Paris' famous academic, artistic
and intellectual milieus waft in and out of focus through a haze of gypsy smoke.
Public
Holidays:
Most museums and shops are closed on France's jours fériés (public
holidays).
France's national day, 14 July, commemorates the 1789 storming of the Bastille
prison, the event that kicked off the French Revolution. Across the country,
the holiday is celebrated with serious abandon, especially in Paris, where the
day ends with a massive fireworks display and throngs of people in the streets.
Calendar
1 January - New Year's Day
late March or April - Easter Sunday, Easter Monday
1 May - May Day
8 May - Victory Day
May (40th day after Easter) - Ascension
7th Sunday after Easter - Pentecost or Whit Sunday
8th Monday after Easter - Whit Monday
14 July - Bastille Day
15 August - Assumption
1 November - All Saints' Day
11 November - Armistice Day
25 December - Christmas Day
[top]
 |
Paris
is the most visited city in the world and it is hard to list all the monuments
and spots of interest in the French capital.
Nevertheless, we can highlight the following ones as main tourist attractions: |
Musée
du Louvre
This enormous building, constructed around 1200 as a fortress and rebuilt in
the mid-16th century for use as a royal palace, began its career as a public
museum in 1793. As part of Mitterand's grands projets in the 1980s, the Louvre
was revamped with the addition of a 21m (67ft) glass pyramid entrance. Vast
scrums of people puff and pant through the rooms full of paintings, sculptures
and antiques, including the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo and Winged Victory. The
Louvre Museum is, without any doubt, the largest and most significant museum
in the world.
Centre
Georges Pompidou
The Centre Georges Pompidou, displaying and promoting modern and contemporary
art, was built between 1972 and 1977. The hi-tech though daffy design has recently
begun to age and woven into a mêlée of renovation. It boasts galleries,
a three-tiered library with over 2000 periodicals, including English-language
newspapers and magazines from around the world.
Notre Dame Cathedral
 |
The
city's cathedral ranks as one of the greatest achievements of Gothic architecture.
Notre Dame was begun in 1163 and completed around 1345. The massive interior
can accommodate over 6000 worshippers.
The trio of main entrances and their statues, spectacular rose windows, a 7800-pipe organ and top adorning gargoyles ornate this cathedral. Visitors can climb to the top of the west façade and enjoy a breathtaking panoramic view of Paris. |
Sainte
Chapelle
Lying inside the Palais de Justice (law courts), Sainte Chapelle was consecrated
in 1248 and built to house what was reputedly Jesus' crown of thorns and other
relics purchased by King Louis IX earlier in the 13th century. The gem-like
chapel, illuminated by a veritable curtain of 13th-century stained glass (the
oldest and finest in Paris), is best viewed from the law courts' main entrance
- a magnificently gilded, 18th-century gate.
The Sainte Chapelle, Nôtre-Dame and the Conciergerie building are located on Ile de la Cité, the oldest part of Paris called Lutèce in the Roman times. This nearby island Ile de Saint Louis are considered one of the most quiet but expensive areas in Paris.
Musée
d'Orsay
Spectacularly housed in a former railway station built in 1900, the Musée
d'Orsay was reinaugurated in its present form in 1986. Inside, visitors can
find artistic treasures produced between 1848 and 1914, including highly regarded
Impressionist and Post-impressionist works and the Art-Nouveau movement.
Nearby, the Musée Rodin displays the lively bronze and marble sculptures
by Camille Claudel and Auguste Rodin, including casts of some of Rodin's most
celebrated works.
Eiffel Tower
Avenue des Champs-Élysées & Arc du Triomphe
 |
A popular promenade for the ostentatious aristocrats of old, the Avenue des Champs-Élysées has long symbolised the style and joie de vivre of Paris. Encroaching fast-food joints, car showrooms and cinemas have somewhat dulled the sheen, but the 2km (1mi) long, 70m (235ft) wide stretch is still an ideal place for evening walks and relishing the food at overpriced restaurants. It is the most popular avenue in the world. Along this avenue, visitors find Grand Palais/Petit Palais built for 1900 World's Fair. The crowning moment of a walk down the Avenue des Champs-Elysees is a visit to the Arc de Triomphe and its Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. This memorial to the fallen soldiers from World Wars I & II stands in a highly visible place at the juncture of 12 roads at the Place Charles de Gaulle-Etoile. The Arc de Triomphe was commissioned in 1806 by Napoleon as a tribute to his own military achievements. |
Jardins
des Tuilleries
King
Louis XIV's gardener designed the luxurious Garden of Tuileries. It is nowadays
the most central park in Paris and serves as the "backyard" to the
famous Musee du Louvre.
From the Louvre one can walk a straight line through the groomed Tuileries to
the historic Place de La Concorde, stroll down the bustling Avenue des Champs
Elysees to the stunning Arc De Triomphe.
The Jardin des Tuileries is spread out over 2,500 acres, running parallel to
rue de Rivoli and the banks of the Seine River. In addition to numerous flowerbeds
and trimmed green landscapes, the garden features several intriguing sculptures
and is a perfect place for relaxation by its fountains.
Place
de La Concorde and Madeleine
The
Place de La Concorde was originally named Place Louis XV and was designated
as the site for which a commemorating statue of the king would be erected. A
few decades later, revolutionaries seized power, renamed the square Place de
La Revolution and replaced the statue with a guillotine. The square soon became
a major forefront for public execution and saw many famous dignitaries, such
as Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette and Danton fall. After the revolution the Place
would change names several times over, until it was officially dubbed the Place
de La Concorde by the 1830 Revolution.
In place of the guillotine is the powerful Obelisk of Luxor, a pink granite
monolith that was given to the French as a gift in 1829 by the viceroy of Egypt,
Mehemet Ali. The Obelisk is flanked on both sides by two fountains constructed
during the same period.
Directly to the north of the Place is the beautiful l'Hotel Crillon and l'Hotel
of the Navy Minister. To the east lies the Tuileries; the west brings the Avenue
de Champs Elysees, and to the south is the bridge of the Concorde to the Assemblée
Nationale.
The nearby Madeleine Church was built as a Greek temple in 1790 on behalf of
Napoléon as the Temple of Glory to his Grande Armée, therefore
with a commemorative role. In 1814, Louis XVIII confirmed that the Madeleine
should be a church.
Opéra
Garnier
Built between 1862-1875, its architect was Charles Garnier.
Its total area is 11,000 square metres (118,404 square feet) and a vast stage
has room for up to 450 artists. The opera seats only 2,200 people.
Legend has it that the Empress Eugénie asked Garnier whether the building
was to be in Greek or Roman style to which he replied "It is in the Napoléon
III style Madame !"' It remains an ornate building richly decorated with
friezes, columns, and winged figures among other statues and embellishments.
This richness continues inside with velvet, gold leaf, and nymphs and cherubs.
The auditorium's central chandelier weighs over six tons, and its ceiling was
painted in 1964 by Chagall.
The
Invalides
Designed
to accommodate French war veterans, the Hotel des Invalides (Hotel for the Disabled)
was founded by Louis XIV in 1671. Up until that time, housing for disabled soldiers
was non-existent in France. The construction project was entrusted to architect
Liberal Bruant, who completed the building in 1674, with living quarters for
up to 4,000.
Les Invalides comprises a collection of monuments: L'Eglise du Dome (Dome Church),
Napoleon's Tomb, the Army museums etc.
The nearby Pont de Alexandre III is the most elegant bridge of Paris and symbolizes
the Franco-Russian friendship. It was built in 1900 for the Universal Fair.
Other remarkable bridges of the Seine River are Pont de L'Alma, Point Neuf,
Pont des Arts, Pont de la Concorde etc.
Luxembourg Gardens and Quartier Latin
 |
Spread
out over approximately 2,500 acres, the Jardin du Luxembourg (Garden of
Luxembourg) is a favored refuge among Parisians. The tranquil grounds
are situated on the Left Bank and are scattered with a variety of classical
statues, fountains and flowers. At the head of the garden, visitors find
the Palais du Luxembourg, built in the early 17th century under Queen
Marie de Medicis in an Italian Renaissance style. |
|
The Jardin du Luxembourg remains a perfect setting for recreation, relaxation, romance or just about anything else one can think of. Visitors often find themselves in tennis matches, chess or bridge games, courting potential lovers, concerts, reading, or just chatting by the pond. Adjacent
to the Jardin du Luxembourg is the historic student district, Le Quartier
Latin (Latin Quarter), youthful, animated neighborhood around the Sorbonne
University -center of Univeristy of Paris, so named because Latin was
the language of instruction until the French Revolution. |
|
The
Panthéon
This basilica is a tribute to great people from French history. King Louis XV
commissioned the architect Soufflot to design a great building for him in 1755.
It was to be dedicated to Saint Geneviéve who was buried in an earlier
basilica in 512 and whom the king credited with the cure of his serious illness.
Inside the civic temple the central space beneath the dome is dominated by Foucault's
pendulum, swinging back and forth.
Walk around to the back of the building and head down to the crypt -- its dimly
lit space is filled with vaults containing the remains of many great public
figures, like Rousseau, Victor Hugo or Zola.
Montmartre
Quartier
Before the First World War, this hillside and Bohemian neighborhood was bustling
with writers and artists. The "Mount of Martyrs" gets its name from
Saint Denis, Paris' first bishop who was killed here with two other priests
some 17 centuries ago. Legend has it that he picked up his severed head and
walked several kilometers to the north before expiring at the spot now occupied
by Saint-Denis Cathedral. Now Montmartre is full with cafés and artists
who draw portraits of the tourists at the Place du Tertre.
Sacre-Coeur
The Basilica of the Sacred Heart , in Romano-Byzantine style, was built in 1870
due to the need expressed by the Church in the Montmartre Quartier. This sanctuary
is dedicated to the heart of Jesus-Christ, "true God and real man"
and present in the Holy Sacrament in display day and night. The interior of
the church contains one of the worlds largest mosaics, and depicts Christ with
outstretched arms. This remarkably white structure is not painted: its whiteness
comes from a stone that secretes a white substance when it rains! In contrast
to the exterior, the interior is extensively decorated with mosaics. The gallery
of the Dome offers a great view of the entire city.
Cimetière
du Père Lachaise
This necropolis attracts more visitors than any other cemetery of the world.
Within the manicured, evergreen enclosure are the tombs of over one million
people including such luminaries as the composer Chopin, the writers Molière,
Apollinaire, Oscar Wilde, Balzac, Marcel Proust and Gertrude Stein; the artists
David, Delacroix, Pissarro, Seurat and Modigliani; the actors Sarah Bernhardt,
Simone Signoret and Yves Montand; the singer Édith Piaf and Jim Morrison;
and the dancer Isadora Duncan.
The Montparnasse and Montmartre necropolis are also worth a visit.
Place des Vosges
 |
The
Marais district spent a long time as a swamp and then as agricultural
land, until in 1605 King Henry IV decided to transform it into a residential
area for Parisian aristocrats. He did this by building Place des Vosges
and arraying 36 symmetrical houses around its square perimeter.
|
Tour
Montparnasse
A fine example of twentieth century architecture. The 56th and 59th floors are
open to the public. Superb view of Paris (209 metres). Architects; Beaudoin,
Cassin, De Marien, Saubot (1973).
Place
Vendôme
This octogonal plaza was designed by Hardouin-Mansart (to emphasize the beauty
of a statue of Louis XIV (the Sun King). As the statue was destroyed during
the Revolution, Napoleon I replaced it by a column: the glory of his Grande
Armée and put himself at the top, dressed in Roman garb. The world's
greatest jewelers have shops on the square.
La
Défense
The Grande Arche de la Défense located just west of Paris is surrounded
by a complex of skyscrapers, aligned with "Triumphal Way" formed by
Napoleon's arch, Champs-Élysées, and Place de la Concorde.
The Parks Bois de Boulogne, Bois de Vincennes and Parc Monceau are perfect place for relaxation and outdoor sports. The City-hall (Hôtel de Ville), the Palais-Royal, the remarkable squares Place de la Republique, Place du Châtelet or Place Bastille and the churches St. Sulpice, Saint-Germain-des-Près, St. Etienne du Mont, are also worth a visit.
Students
will discover just by walking along the little streets and long avenues many
other monuments and hidden treasures of Paris.
[top]
Walking
Tours
Themed walks are offered by Paris Walking Tours (tel: 01 48 09 21 40). Amongst
them are Hemingway's Paris, the Louvre, Historic Marais and many more. Specialist
tours are offered by Promenades Gourmandes, 187 rue du Temple, 3rd (tel: 01
48 04 56 84) for tours of markets, food shops and restaurant kitchens.
Details of most tours are listed in the weekly Pariscope magazine.
Bus
Tours
The Balabus, a sight-seeing bus, runs from stops marked 'Balabus' from mid-April
to mid-September, It passes all the major tourist sights between the Grand Arche
de la Défense and the Gare de Lyon.
Details can be obtained from any métro station. Several companies offer
coach tours around Paris, with Les Cars Rouges (tel: (01 42 30 55 50) using
distinctive red London double-decker buses. Tickets cost around € 20 and
there are 9 stops -main tourist attractions- and a recorded commentary in English.
Passengers can get on and off at will, with tickets valid for two days.
Boat
Tours
The city's Bateaux-Mouches and Vedettes are a popular and instantly recognisable
feature of the Seine. Many companies offer cruises - some with lunch or dinner
- including Bateaux Vedettes de Paris (tel: (01 47 05 71 29; fax: (01 47 05
74 53), Les Vedettes du Pont-Neuf (tel: (01 46 33 98 38; fax: (01 43 29 86 19)
and Bateaux Parisiens (tel: 01 44 11 33 55; fax: 01 45 56 07 88).
Schiller Paris organizes a boat tour once a semester for new students.
Biking
Tours
The leaflet Paris à Vélo, available at town halls, the tourist
office, or bike hire outlets, details various cycle routes. In addition, there
are also routes in the Bois de Boulogne, the Bois de Vincennes and a popular
Sunday trip by the Seine (closed to cars between 10am-4pm). Paris à Vélo,
C'est Sympa!, 37 boulevard Bourdon (tel: 01 48 87 60 01; fax: 01 48 87 61 01),
organises half-day bicycle tours for € 23-25 (concessions available) and
Paris by night tours for € 29-31 (concessions available).
Central
Tourist Office (Convention & Visitors Bureau)
L'Office de Tourisme et des Congrès de Paris
127 avenue des Champs-Elysées, 8th District
Tel: (01) 08 36 68 31 12. Fax: (01) 49 52 53 00.
Website: www.paris-touristoffice.com
E-mail: info@paris-touristoffice.com
Opening hours: Summer daily 09am-20pm ( in winter Sun 11am-6pm).
Tourist
offices are also located at the Gare de Lyon (Mon-Sat 8am-6pm) and Eiffel Tower
(May to Sep daily 11am-6pm).
[top]
France is known
worldwide for the diversity of its countryside and the richness of its architectural
and cultural heritage.
We recommend our students discovering France's natural, cultural and historic
jewels during their stay. The following sights in France are really a must:
 |
· The Chateaux de la Loire (Castles of the Loire Valley) brings you straight back into the heart of French history. · The Versailles Palace, the Sun-King Palace and its gardens boasts all the splendor of the royal era. · You can approach Normandy from different routes: that of Mont Saint-Michel, magnificent symbol of spirituality or from the historic beaches of the D-Day Landings. · At Reims, the champagne capital of France you can discover its great gothic cathedral as well as the secrets of a champagne cellar. Other stupifying cathedrals can be found in Chartres, Amiens and Rouen. · You may also discover the universe of Monet at Giverny and the famous landscapes at Barbizon. · Different wine routes, picturesque village and the international and charming city of Strasbourg seduce any visitor in Alsace. · The Fontenaibleau Palace, as well as the amusements parks Asterix Park and Disneyland Paris are not far away from Paris. |
Brittany, the French Riviera (Nice, Monaco or Cannes), the Alps, the Jura region, the Pyrenees, the dunes and beaches in South-West France, the Wine Areas (Bordeaux, Burgundy etc.) are also of vital importance to get to know France in depth.
Check
with the Cultural Affairs office or the Student Council for the excursions and
visits outside Paris organized through the semester. You can also book excursions
for yourself in a travel agency or at:
www.ticketavenue.com/excursion
[top]