The Arc de Triomphe and other Paris, France Things to Do Tips

The Arc de Triomphe is one of Paris' top attractions. It was built by Napoleon after he won his greatest military battle in Austerlitz in 1805, and he promised to his men that they would go home under triumphal arches. Well unfortunately the arch got delayed and was not completed until 1836, so I doubt many of the soldiers at Austerlitz ever got to march through it!

It is possible to climb the Arc de Triomphe, and the views are very good. Essentially the Arc is in the middle of one of the biggest and widest roundabouts the world has ever seen, with 12 large avenues leading in and out of it. To watch the traffic going round the Place de Charles de Gaulle (essentially the roundabout) especially at rush hour is to marvel at the aggression of the Parisien drivers as they fight for their way onto the roundabout (it used to be that traffic on the roundabout had to give way to traffic trying to join, and it may still be the case today).

It is worth noting that there are a series of underpasses that will lead you under the road. The first time I visited I did not realise this, and after spending minutes trying to cross the road. Eventually I stuck my head down and made a mad dash for it - not clever I know (but jay-walking is not an offence in Britain, so we are used to crossing roads as and when we feel like it)!

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Address: Place Charles-de-Gaulle Etoile
Directions: Metro Line 1, 2, RER A : Charles-de-Gaulle Etoile

I believe a lot of tourists don't make it as far as Sainte-Chapelle, which is a shame, as it is hugely impressive. The whole place seems to be ablaze with light from the stained glass windows that run the whole way around the church.

Sainte-Chapelle was built in 1248 by Louis XI as his own personal chapel. He believed he kept Christ's crown of thorns in there and many other religious relics such as a fragment from the cross. An interesting statistic is that King Louis XI paid almost three times as much money for his relics (purchased from the Emperor of Constantinople) as he did in building Sainte-Chapelle.

Before you enter the church, look up at one of the pinnacles and try and spot the crown of thorns on it. This was placed here as a commemoration of the first relic that Louis bought.

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Phone: 01 53 73 78 50
Address: Boulevard du Palais
Directions: Sainte-Chapelle is inside the Palais of Justice on Ile de le Cité-- a few minute walk from Notre Dame. Métro : Cité, Staint-Michel, or Châtelet. RER: Chatelet -Les-Halles, Saint-Michel
Website: http://www.pbase.com/francist/chap&page=all

An easy walk down from Montmartre and Sacre Coeur. The Moulin Rouge club is in one of the seedier parts of Paris. By day it feels fairly innocuous, but at night it definitely feels more sinister. The area around is full of strip clubs, and if the bouncers in these clubs feel you might be pointing your camera a little too close to their club, they will come after you, and they aren't the sort of people to mess with!

The Moulin Rouge has recently been immortalised in a Hollywood film, and it has been made famous for the racey and rather saucy routines that went on inside.

The nearest Metro is Blanche.

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Address: 82 Blvd de Clichy

This cemetery is full of famous dead people (or monuments to famous dead people), including Edith Piaf, Victor Noir, Frederic Chopin, Sarah Bernhardt, Simone Signoret, Yves Montand, Oscar Wilde and Marcel Proust. However perhaps the reason the most people go is to see the grave of Jim Morrison (of The Doors fame).

Jim Morrisons grave is decidely low-key, and seems to always have people around it.

Whilst in the cemetery, check out the grave of Victor Noir, a journalist who was shot by a cousin of Napoleon. If is a life size statue that is believed to have fertility powers - which is evident from the shiny groin which seems to receive a lot of rubbing...

If you visit. the first thing I would recommend you do before going in to this cemetery is to buy a map (which are sold near the entrances). It is a big place and if you are looking for a particular grave, you will stand little chance without one.

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Address: Metro Pere Lachaise (16 Rue du Repos)

The Louvre Art Gallery is one of the most famous Art Galleries is the world. And houses probably the worlds best known painting - the "Mona Lisa" by Leonardo da Vinci. Another must see is the Venus de Milo statue from Greece. Pogues fans may want to look out for the painting "The Raft of the Medusa" which was used (albeit in modified form) for one of their albums.

The building itself was originally constructed as a fortress to keep out Viking marauders. In these days it had a keep and a dungeon, but these are long since gone.

The Glass Pyramid in the picture was opened in 1989 and is the new entrance into the Louvre. I believe it was not popular when it was first built, but has now become grown in Parisien affections.

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Address: Metro stop Palais Royal/Musee du Louvre

What trip to Paris would be complete without the Eiffel Tower? To many people the Eiffel Tower is Paris. However when the tower was originally built in 1889 for the Universal exhibition, it was meant to be pulled down again after the Exhibition had finished. It remained the Worlds tallest building for over 40 years until the Empire State Building in New York took its crown.

Gustave Eiffel (the architect) stated that the complicated pattern of iron girders in the tower was there to keep the tower stable in the wind, but to most people the pattern just adds beauty to the tower.

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Address: Trocadero
Directions: You can't miss it!!!

The Place de la Concorde is a very large square in the middle of Paris. It was here that Revolutionary France beheaded their King Louis XVI and Queen Marie-Antoinette (who on being told that the peasants were starving and had no bread to eat, is famously said to have replied "Let them eat cake") with the Guillotine. As is the way with many revolutions, two of the most important revolutionaries were also killed here at the hands of Madame Guillotine. In those days this square was called Place de la Revolution.

The picture shows the 3200 year old Egyptian obelisk against the Eiffel Tower and one of the several statues in the square.

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Address: Metro 1, 13 : Concorde

Even if you are American (which I'm not) and are used to wide roads, you can't help but be impressed by the sheer width of the Champs-Elysees. Especially when you consider that it is in the middle of an old city which typically have much more narrow roads.

The Champs-Elysees starts at the Arc de Triomphe and heads outwards. The pavements are also very wide and are full of cafes, cinemas and shops. It is one of THE places to be seen (or to own an establishment) in Paris, and has huge numbers of designer stores and 5 star hotels along it.

A good way to see the street is to take the Metro to Franklin D Roosevelt and then stroll up towards the Arc de Triomphe.

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Address: Metro Franklin D Roosevelt

So why I hear you say, am I suggesting you go and visit a business district in Paris?

The best answer I can give is that it is like a modern open air museum. The architecture of the buildings is absolutely stunning. They are intermingled with sculptures. And to cap it all off, a new Arche was built in 1989 "La Grande Arche". If you like architecture, you have to come here.

The picture shows La Grande Arche on the right hand side and a sculpture by the famous Spanish (or Catalan - a region in Spain) artist Jean Miro. If you like his art, he has a very impressive foundation in Barcelona (Spain), which although I am not a particularly arty person, I thoroughly enjoyed.

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This is the church that was made famous by the Hunchback of Notre Dame story. Although to be fair, the church was already pretty famous in its own right. The first stone was even laid by a pope!

The style of the Cathedral is Gothic which means it has lots of flying buttresses. It has a couple of impressive circular stained glass "Rose" windows, and many nasty looking gargoyles on the walls outside. Unfortunately in my photo, the scaffolding is hiding the circular rose window that is above the main entrance.

It is possible to climb up one of the twers and get some great views of Paris, but after climbing the Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triomphe, you may feel this is one climb too far.

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Address: Ile de la Cité