Travel Guide - Paris

It's little wonder that so many wistful songs have been penned over the years about France's capital, Paris . Few cities leave the visitor with such vivid impressions, whether it's the drifting cherry blossoms in the tranquil gardens of Notre-Dame, the riverside quais on a summer evening, the sound of blues in atmospheric cellar bars, or the ancient alleyways and cobbled lanes of the historic Latin Quarter and villagey Montmartre.

Paris has no problem living up to the painted images and movie myths with which we're all familiar. Indeed, the whole city is something of a work of art. Two thousand years of shaping and reshaping have resulted in monumental building, sweeping avenues, grand esplanades and celebrated bridges. Many of its older buildings have survived intact, having been spared the ravages of flood and fire and saved from Hitler's intended destruction. Moreover, they survive with a sense of continuity and homogeneity, as new sits comfortably against a backdrop of old - the glass Pyramid against the grand fortress of the Louvre, the Column of Liberty against the Opéra Bastille. Time has acted as judge, as buildings once surrounded in controversy - the Eiffel Tower, the Sacré-Coeur, the Pompidou Centre - have in their turn become well-known symbols of the city. Yet for all the tremendous pomp and magnificence of its monuments, the city operates on a very human scale, with exquisite, secretive little nooks tucked away off the Grands Boulevards and very definite little communities revolving around games of boules and the local boulangerie and café.

Architecturally, the Cathédrale de Notre-Dame, Sainte-Chapelle and the Palais du Louvre , in the city's centre, provide a constant reminder of Paris's religious and royal past. The backdrop of the streets is predominantly Neoclassical, the result of nineteenth-century development designed to reflect the power of the French state. Each period since, however, has added, more or less discreetly, novel examples of its own styles - with Auguste Perret, Le Corbusier, Mallet-Stevens and Eiffel among the early twentieth-century innovators. In recent decades, the architectural additions have been more dramatic in scale, producing new and major landmarks, and recasting down-at-heel districts into important centres of cultural and consumer life. New buildings such as La Villette, La Grande Arche de la Défense , the Opéra Bastille , the Institut du Monde Arabe and the Bibliothèque Nationale have expanded the dimensions of the city, pointing it determinedly towards the future.

Paris's museums and galleries , not least the mighty Louvre , number among the world's finest. The tradition of state cultural endowment is very much alive in the city and collections are exceedingly well displayed and cared for. Many are also housed in beautiful locations, such as old mansions and palaces, others in bold conversions, most famously the Musée d'Orsay , which occupies a former train station. The Impressionists here and at the Musée Marmottan , the moderns at the Palais de Tokyo , the smaller Picasso and Rodin museums - all repay a visit. In addition, the contemporary scene is well represented in the commercial galleries that fill the Marais, St-Germain, the Bastille and the area around the Champs-Élysées, and there's an ever-expanding range of museums devoted to other areas of human endeavour - science, history, decoration, fashion and performance art.

Few cities can compete with the thousand-and-one cafés, bars and restaurants that line every Parisian street and boulevard. The variety of style and décor, cuisine and price is hard to beat too. Traditional French food has become increasingly innovative and the many ethnic origins represented among the city's millions have opened eateries providing a range of gastronomic options for every palate and pocket.

Paris is one of Europe's major centres for gay men. There are numerous gay bars, clubs, restaurants, saunas and shops, concentrated especially in the Marais . While less visible, the lesbian community is strong and well organized, with networks of feminist groups and a number of publications.

The high spots of the calendar are the annual Gay Pride parade and festival, and the Bastille Day Ball. Gay Pride is normally held on the Saturday closest to the summer solstice, and is a major carnival for both lesbians and gays. The Bastille Day Ball (July 13, 10pm-dawn), a wild open-air dance on the quai de la Tournelle, 5e (Mº Pont Marie), is free for all to join in.

Eating and drinking are among Paris's chief delights, as they are in the country as a whole. The capital offers a tremendous variety of cuisines: as well as regional French cooking, notably from the southwest, you can sample Senegalese, Caribbean, Thai, eastern European and North African cuisine, among others. There's also a huge diversity of eating and drinking establishments: luxurious restaurants in the traditional style or elbow-to-elbow bench-and-trestle-table jobs; spacious brasseries and cafés where you can watch the world go by while nibbling on a baguette sandwich; or dark, cavernous beer cellars and tiny wine bars with sawdust on the floor offering wines by the glass from every region of France. You can take coffee and cakes in a chintzy salon de thé , in a bookshop or gallery, or even in the confines of a mosque. Bars can be medieval vaults, minimalist or postmodern design units, London-style pubs or period pieces in styles ranging from the Swinging Sixties to the Naughty Nineties.

With its vibrant street atmosphere, buskers and lively pavement cafés, Paris holds an immediate appeal for many children . The most popular tourist attractions such as the Eiffel Tower and boat trips on the Seine are also sure to delight the young. Don't necessarily rule out museums - some, such as the Musée des Arts et Métiers, Pompidou Centre and Parc de la Villette, have interactive displays and hands-on activities, designed to appeal to all ages. When your children get fed up of trawling the streets you can recharge batteries in one of the city's many parks and gardens. And if you really want to give the kiddies a treat, Disneyland Paris is just outside the city, and there's also the home-grown theme park to the north, Parc Astérix.
The French are extremely welcoming to children on the whole. Many restaurants and cafés offer a special menu enfant or are willing to cook simpler food on request. Hotels tack on only a small supplement to the regular room rate for an additional bed or cot

It's little wonder that so many wistful songs have been penned over the years about France's capital, Paris . Few cities leave the visitor with such vivid impressions, whether it's the drifting cherry blossoms in the tranquil gardens of Notre-Dame, the riverside quais on a summer evening, the sound of blues in atmospheric cellar bars, or the ancient alleyways and cobbled lanes of the historic Latin Quarter and villagey Montmartre.

Paris has no problem living up to the painted images and movie myths with which we're all familiar. Indeed, the whole city is something of a work of art. Two thousand years of shaping and reshaping have resulted in monumental building, sweeping avenues, grand esplanades and celebrated bridges. Many of its older buildings have survived intact, having been spared the ravages of flood and fire and saved from Hitler's intended destruction. Moreover, they survive with a sense of continuity and homogeneity, as new sits comfortably against a backdrop of old - the glass Pyramid against the grand fortress of the Louvre, the Column of Liberty against the Opéra Bastille. Time has acted as judge, as buildings once surrounded in controversy - the Eiffel Tower, the Sacré-Coeur, the Pompidou Centre - have in their turn become well-known symbols of the city. Yet for all the tremendous pomp and magnificence of its monuments, the city operates on a very human scale, with exquisite, secretive little nooks tucked away off the Grands Boulevards and very definite little communities revolving around games of boules and the local boulangerie and café.

Architecturally, the Cathédrale de Notre-Dame, Sainte-Chapelle and the Palais du Louvre , in the city's centre, provide a constant reminder of Paris's religious and royal past. The backdrop of the streets is predominantly Neoclassical, the result of nineteenth-century development designed to reflect the power of the French state. Each period since, however, has added, more or less discreetly, novel examples of its own styles - with Auguste Perret, Le Corbusier, Mallet-Stevens and Eiffel among the early twentieth-century innovators. In recent decades, the architectural additions have been more dramatic in scale, producing new and major landmarks, and recasting down-at-heel districts into important centres of cultural and consumer life. New buildings such as La Villette, La Grande Arche de la Défense , the Opéra Bastille , the Institut du Monde Arabe and the Bibliothèque Nationale have expanded the dimensions of the city, pointing it determinedly towards the future.

Paris's museums and galleries , not least the mighty Louvre , number among the world's finest. The tradition of state cultural endowment is very much alive in the city and collections are exceedingly well displayed and cared for. Many are also housed in beautiful locations, such as old mansions and palaces, others in bold conversions, most famously the Musée d'Orsay , which occupies a former train station. The Impressionists here and at the Musée Marmottan , the moderns at the Palais de Tokyo , the smaller Picasso and Rodin museums - all repay a visit. In addition, the contemporary scene is well represented in the commercial galleries that fill the Marais, St-Germain, the Bastille and the area around the Champs-Élysées, and there's an ever-expanding range of museums devoted to other areas of human endeavour - science, history, decoration, fashion and performance art.

Few cities can compete with the thousand-and-one cafés, bars and restaurants that line every Parisian street and boulevard. The variety of style and décor, cuisine and price is hard to beat too. Traditional French food has become increasingly innovative and the many ethnic origins represented among the city's millions have opened eateries providing a range of gastronomic options for every palate and pocket.

Paris is one of Europe's major centres for gay men. There are numerous gay bars, clubs, restaurants, saunas and shops, concentrated especially in the Marais . While less visible, the lesbian community is strong and well organized, with networks of feminist groups and a number of publications.

The high spots of the calendar are the annual Gay Pride parade and festival, and the Bastille Day Ball. Gay Pride is normally held on the Saturday closest to the summer solstice, and is a major carnival for both lesbians and gays. The Bastille Day Ball (July 13, 10pm-dawn), a wild open-air dance on the quai de la Tournelle, 5e (Mº Pont Marie), is free for all to join in.

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