"PLACE DES VOSGES - Paris' oldest square - constructed under Henri IV from 1605 - 1612 - consists of 39 houses, each made of red brick. Several of its houses have their own history, and among these are number 1 bis, where Mme de Sevigné was born; number 6, the Victor Hugo museum; number 17, former residence of Bossuet; and number 21, where Richelieu lived from 1615 - 1627"
"NOTRE DAME - My favourite viewpoint to the Cathedral"
"NOTRE DAME - Another interesting view to the back of the Cathedral, from Ile St. Louis"
"NOTRE DAME - A gothic masterpiece, was preceeded by a Gallo-Roman temple to Jupiter, a Christian basilica, and a Romanesque church. Conceived by Maurice de Sully, its construction began in 1163 and was finished in 1345. Road distances in France are calculated on the basis of the "0 km" marked on the square in front of the cathedral"
"BEAUBOURG - The National Centre of Art and Culture was an idea of President Georges Pompidou who wanted to create in the heart of Paris an institution dedicated to modern and contemporary creation. It is housed in a fabulous building designed by Renzo Piano, and first opened its doors in 1977, to receive around 6 million visitors each year"
"CENTRE POMPIDOU - The views from the top of the building are great"
"SUNSET - but the sunset from the right bank of the Seine towards the Eiffel Tower is also interesting, notwithstanding the rain..."
"CHATELET - The square owes its name to an ancient fortress, the Grand Châtelet. The column, dating from 1808, was erected in remembrance of Napoleon I's victories, and actually is not being taken away by the truck!"
"CONCIERGERIE - Built by Philippe the Fair (1284-1314) to lodge the Concierge of the Palace, responsible for the collection of rents, rapidly turned into prison, which could contain more than 1000 people. Among its more famous prisoners were Marie Antoinette, Charlotte Corday, and Danton"
"SAMARITAINE - View from the top, when it was still open"
"TUILLERIES - The garden was started by Catherine de Medicis, but its present layout (1664) is attributable to Andre le Nôtre; it was made on the site of a tile-works on the banks of the River Seine, and is now on the main axis of Paris"
"CHAMPS-ELYSÉES - «La plus belle avenue du monde»"
"EIFFEL TOWER - Views from the top"
"MONTPARNASSE - Rue de Rennes, home to the first FNAC, a surprisingly culture supermarket"
"JARDIN DES PLANTES - The main botanical garden in France is situated on the left bank of the river Seine, and covers 280,000 m². It opened to the public in 1650"
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