Paris aerial Photos

Paris: An aerial view of Paris from the Eiffel Tower, showing a football stadium and modern high-rise buildings.

Famous Places as seen by Great Painters

Paris is a city where nature has never worn out her welcome, but continues to thrive even in the ultra-modern quarters. The Seine with its shady banks and sunny quays provides a perfect haven of flowers and greenery, while the whole city is dotted with parks and gardens. The Impressionists and after them the Fauves roamed Paris with eager, understanding eyes, recording the tremor of the trees along the avenues, the shimmering surface of the river, old walls glowing in the sun, chimney smoke gathering into wisps of cloud above the rooftops. On monuments mellowed by time the faintest shades of color flicker as if seen across a tenuous veil.

This unique light of Paris, made of sunshine and mist, gives every element its rightful place and tone in the panorama. Even the Eiffel Tower, modern times' great contribution to the silhouette of Paris, blends with the monuments of the past, a soaring, bodiless piece of architecture giving the full measure of the sky above the city. The best painters of the present day no longer linger over anecdote and detail; their broad synthetic vision embraces the seen and unseen treasures of a city as rich in past glories as it is rich in promise for the future.

The earliest paintings in which we can identify actual views of Paris date from the transitional period from Romanesque to Gothic, when outline drawing was coming back into favor at the expense of the monumental style. Definitely on the way out were the lavish gold backgrounds we find, for example, in the Psalter of St Louis, in which the scenes take place beneath the pinnacles, rose-windows and pointed arches of the SainteChapelle. Manuscript painting moved on from blue-and-red to shadings of color, to lively, freehand drawing, to the checkered backgrounds typical of the Parisian ateliers.

Mathematicians commemorated on the Eiffel Tower

When Gustave Eiffel built his famous Parisian tower, he included the names of 72 prominent French scientists on plaques around the first stage. Those who are in our archive are listed below.

Click on the name below to go to the biography.

Ampère Arago Borda Carnot Cauchy Chasles Clapeyron Coriolis Coulomb De Prony

Delambre Delaunay Foucault Fourier Fresnel Lagrange Lalande Lamé Laplace Le Verrier

Legendre Malus Monge Morin Navier Poinsot Poisson Sturm

Other Web site:

The full list of the 72 commemorated is part of the Eiffel Tower web site.

restautrant of eiffel tower

Just above the Strip on the 11th floor of the Paris Las Vegas' Eiffel Tower replica, Chef J. Joho's Eiffel Tower Restaurant offers the city's premier French cuisine, breathtaking views of the Las Vegas strip and is regarded as the crown jewel in Paris Las Vegas' collection of restaurants.

Guests are whisked to the restaurant in a glass elevator that opens to the electric activity of one of the city’s top kitchens before being escorted to the dining room, where panoramic views and exquisite cuisine take center stage. The glittering lights of the Las Vegas Strip appear even more dramatic in the dining room’s intimate lighting, and guests are treated to spectacular views of the glorious Bellagio water fountain show. Metal framework from the Eiffel Tower dramatically breaks through the restaurant walls and creates a modernized art deco style. “No matter what you call it, it’s smashing,” says Muriel Stevens of the Las Vegas Sun. Tours of Eiffel Tower Restaurant are available throughout the day.

Chef/proprietor J. Joho has artfully updated a classic French menu. Highlights include a grand seafood platter with lobster, shrimp, oysters, crab and clams, tournedos Rossini with foie gras and truffle sauce, roasted rack of lamb, and a decadent selection of soufflés.

The Eiffel Tower history

HISTORY
The Eiffel Tower was built for the International Exhibition of Paris of 1889 commemorating the centenary of the French Revolution. The Prince of Wales, later King Edward VII of England, opened the tower. Of the 700 proposals submitted in a design competition, Gustave Eiffel's was unanimously chosen.

However it was not accepted by all at first, and a petition of 300 names - including those of Maupassant, Emile Zola, Charles Garnier (architect of the Opéra Garnier), and Dumas the Younger - protested its construction.

DESCRIPTION
At 300 metres (320.75m including antenna), and 7000 tons, it was the world's tallest building until 1930. Other statistics include: 2.5 million rivets. 300 steel workers, and 2 years (1887-1889) to construct it. Sway of at most 12 cm in high winds. Height varies up to 15 cm depending on temperature. 15,000 iron pieces (excluding rivets). 40 tons of paint. 1652 steps to the top.

It was almost torn down in 1909, but was saved because of its antenna - used for telegraphy at that time. Beginning in 1910 it became part of the International Time Service. French radio (since 1918), and French television (since 1957) have also made use of its stature.

During its lifetime, the Eiffel Tower has also witnessed a few strange scenes, including being scaled by a mountaineer in 1954, and parachuted off of in 1984 by two Englishmen. In 1923 a journalist rode a bicycle down from the first level. Some accounts say he rode down the stairs, other accounts suggest the exterior of one of the tower's four legs which slope outward.

The tower has three platforms. A restaurant (extremely expensive; reservations absolutely necessary), the Jules Verne is on the second platform. The top platform has a bar, souvenir shop, and the (recently restored) office of Gustave Eiffel.

Paris: Romance Capital of the World

 

Divided into a right and left bank by the River Seine, Paris is a regal city that exudes savoir faire. It is a city replete with bridges, sidewalk cafés, and endless promenades that never fail to reveal some hidden treasure. The famous Parisian flair for the beautiful and dramatic is on display throughout, from the broadest café-lined boulevard to the narrowest cobbled side street. Entire days can be—and often are—spent in the pursuit of whatever new marvel may lie just around the corner.

Everything about the City of Light—its grand monuments, its cathedrals, its haute couture, art, and cuisine—acts as a kind of elixir to the soul. It is truly the capital of the romantic world, and nothing else compares. Go to Paris with nothing but $100 in your wallet and you’ll still feel like the richest couple in the world.

Winter, spring, summer or, fall, Paris is an ideal place to stroll. One can easily traverse the entire Rive Droit or Rive Gauche by foot in the span of a single day. Climb (or ride) to the uppermost platform of the Eiffel Tower, and you’ll get a eye-catching visual map of where you’re going next: hit such major monuments as the triumphant fountain of the Trocadero, the Ecole Militaire, the gardens of the adjoining Champs de Mars, and the impressive Les Invalides. Meanwhile, hop the Metro and walk the hilly streets of Montmartre and take in the sublime vistas of Sacre Couer and its citywide panorama. Then, of course, there’s the Arc de Triomphe, window-shopping on the Champs-Elysées, and the posh Place de la Concorde, as well as a visit to Paris’s formidable Opera and the cutting-edge shops that dot the arrondissement.

Every trip to Paris must begin with a room. The city is famous for its opulently decorated hotels and you can find luxury in many of Paris’ three-star hotels just as surely as you will in stately five-star landmarks.

The universally beloved Four Seasons Hotel George V (31, avenue George V) is one such landmark. Located in the 8th arrondissement (or neighborhood), halfway between the Seine and the glittering Champs-Elysées, the Four Seasons distinguishes itself on the basis of its sophisticated amenities and flawless service.

Those on the prowl for a more affordable yet satisfying option should unpack their bags at Victoria Palace (between Saint-Germain-des-Prés and Montparnasse). This hotel boasts a centrally located yet quiet location on Paris’ left bank, rooms that border on the sprawling, and a staff discreetly at your service.

The Parisian art scene is impossible to resist, so head to the Louvre (+01.40.20.53.17, www.louvre.fr), the world’s largest museum and home to the famous Mona Lisa. For a taste of expressionism, impressionism, and Modern Art, visit the renowned collection at the gracious Musée D’Orsay (+01.40.49.48.14, www.musee-orsay.fr). And no tour of Paris would be complete without a stop at the Musée Rodin (77 Rue de Varenne, +01.44.18.61.10, www.musee-rodin.fr), where you can pose for photos before such famous Auguste Rodin sculptures as The Kiss and The Thinker.

But of course, there’s a reason that Paris is called the City of Light. At night, the town is illuminated by the dancing reflections that emanate from Paris’ street lamps, monuments, and architectural wonders. Cruise down the Seine or pick a perch on one of the river’s 31 bridges. For something a bit more dramatic, check out the extravagant and sexy cabaret at Lido de Paris (Champs-Elysées, +01.40.76.56.10, www.lido.fr) for a different kind of light show.

But it is in the sidewalk cafés, restaurants, and bars that true eloquence of involvement is found in Paris. Even a simple picnic of fromage et baguette (with accompanying vin rouge, naturally) at the Place des Vosges rivals the most sumptuous dining at any five-star New York restaurant. It is in such elemental pleasures that you’ll truly discover your version of Paris and have a lifetime’s trove of memories from which to dip.

from :http://away.com

paris the capital of romance

 'I love Paris in the springtime,
I love Paris in the fall,
I love Paris in the winter - when it drizzles,
I love Paris in the summer - when it sizzles.
I love Paris every moment, every moment of the year…"

The immortal words and voice of Ella Fitzgerald echo the sentiments of many a traveller to this beautiful and intoxicating city and one of the cultural capitals of Europe. Its incredibly rich history punctuated by megalomaniacal kings, haughty queens and bloody revolutions, its contemporary mix of haute couture and haute cuisine, its self-professed intellectuals and guardians of high culture colonizing street cafes, its Seine river playing host to serenading lovers, its heady bohemian festivals and its quintessentially cosmopolitan sensibility – make Paris one of the most exciting cities to be in anywhere in the world.

Like bustling London, Paris has the same intensity, the same sense of time speeding to catch up with demanding lifestyles that take working and partying equally seriously. Like London, Paris too is dominated by impressive Gothic and Renaissance architecture that lend these cities their distinctive atmosphere. Again, like London, Paris has a river – the Seine - that cuts the city in half and gives life to both banks. Also, like almost any other European capital, Paris wears its history like a proud badge and guards it jealously like a family heirloom. But there is no denying the fact that Paris does all of the above with a certain flair that is difficult to imitate. Parisians like to enjoy themselves, and unlike many other places in the world, they have centuries of experience in honing their spontaneous joie-de-vivre into a fine art!

As far as world-famous landmarks go, Paris has one of the largest collections, so if you choose your paths with foresight, they will be littered with architectural gems. From Marais in the east to the Eiffel Tower in the west, from the Pantheon to the Notre-Dame Cathedral, from the Sacre Couer to the Obelisque, Paris extends itself to every traveller, whether a first timer or an old hand.

If Paris is enchanting during the day, after dark this City of Lights is nothing short of magical. It is said that the soul of Paris lives not simply in its impressive structures, but in its quiet boulevards and parks filled with birdsong, its patisseries and boulangeries, its bustling markets and quaint shops tucked away in back alleys, its secret music clubs and jazz bars. Take the time to see this Paris too, and as Hemingway wrote, your memories of Paris will become a ‘moveable feast’ that will stay with you for the rest of your life.

from:http://www.journeymart.com