Paris
Café philosophy
The traditional Parisian elements of artists, lovers, intellectuals and philosophers continue to have respect in the city. The suave French philosopher Bernard-Henri Levy is a national, if controversial, celebrity, a player on the French stage. And deliberating on the meaning of wisdom or the purpose of suffering is open to every- one in Paris, thanks to the weighty pontificating of the cafés philo (philosophy cafés). The French have their fair share of dumbed- down television programmes (mostly inspired by American equivalents), but the intellectual life is neither unfashionable nor superfluous.
Top Attractions
Eiffel Tower
Originally built as a temporary exhibition for the 1889 World’s Fair, today there’s no other monument that symbolizes Paris better than Gustave Eiffel’s world-famous Iron Lady. It’s breathtaking, whether you see it sparkling from your hotel window after dark or join the millions of annual visitors to brave the glass-bottom elevator trip to the top.
Notre-Dame
It took almost 200 years to finish this 12th-century Gothic masterpiece immortalized by Victor Hugo and his fictional hunchback. Climb the spiral staircase of the bell towers for a close-up gander at the gargoyles, or have a peek at relics such as the Crown of Thorns in the cathedral treasury.
Jardin du Luxembourg
This is one of the prime leisure spots on the Left Bank for urban-weary Parisians. Relax in a reclining park chair with a picnic lunch or a book and watch a game of boules while the kids enjoy a marionette show.
Jardin des Tuileries
The 17th-century formal French landscape of these gardens behind the Louvre is punctuated by contemporary sculptures, a café, and two noteworthy museums: the Musée du Jeu de Paume and the Musée de l’Orangerie. In summer there’s a small amusement park and Ferris wheel.
Arc de Triomphe
The 164-foot-tall Arc de Triomphe has served as the backdrop to official military parades since its completion in 1836. Use the underground passageway to reach the monument, where you can visit the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier beneath the arch or climb the stairs for amazing panoramic views of the city.
Sacré-Coeur
This wedding cake white basilica dominates Montmartre’s hilltop. Most visitors are content with the views overlooking the city from the basilica stairs, but ambitious sight seekers can climb to the bell tower for an even higher vantage point.
Opéra Garnier
Opulent, stunning, and magnificently over the top, Charles Garnier’s opera house is one of the outstanding jewels of the Second Empire. Its illustrious marble staircase and ruby-red box seats have been featured in films from Dangerous Liaisons to Marie-Antoinette, and its backstage corridors are famously haunted by the Phantom of the Opera.
Centre Georges Pompidou
Still visually shocking three decades after its opening in 1977, the Pompidou Centre’s ground-breaking “inside-out” design is the top destination for modern art lovers in Paris.
Musée d’Orsay
After a stunted lifespan as a train station constructed for the 1900 World’s Fair, this beautiful Belle Epoch building is filled with Art Nouveau objects, Impressionist paintings, vintage photography, and realist sculptures. Don’t miss the scale model of the Opéra Garnier or the views of the Seine from the grand ballroom now housing the museum’s restaurant.
Louvre
The grandest museum in the world started out as a humble fortress in the 12th century, growing in size and prestige as a sumptuous royal palace until the French Revolution gave it a new lease on life as home to the young Republic’s art collection. The Big Three—Mona Lisa, Winged Victory, and Venus de Milo—should not be missed.
Paris probably has more familiar landmarks than any other city in the world. As a result, first-time visitors often arrive in the French capital with all sorts of expectations: of grand vistas, of intellectuals discussing weighty matters in cafés, of romance along the Seine, of naughty nightclub revues, of rude people who won’t speak English. If you look hard enough, you can probably find all of those. But another approach is to set aside the preconceptions of Paris and to explore the city’s avenues and backstreets as if the tip of the Eiffel Tower or the spire of Notre Dame wasn’t about to pop into view at any moment.
You’ll soon discover (as so many others before you have) that Paris is enchanting almost everywhere, at any time, even ‘in the summer, when it sizzles’ and ‘in the winter, when it drizzles’, as Cole Porter put it. And you’ll be back. Trust us.
