learn french for paris vacation

2008-04-09T02:44:00.001-07:00

Paris is the capital of France and the second largest city of Western Europe; the river it straddles, the Seine, also has two islands, situated
in the oldest part of the city. Unfortunately a Paris short stay can only ever be considered a taster; you can never become bored in this
beautiful city. If you take the trouble to lean some basic French you will enjoy your trip even more

It is renowned for its wonderful gothic inspired buildings and street markets; the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe and the Louvre must not
go unmentioned. Like most European cities, Paris is easy to get around; there is a superb underground rail system called the Metro which is
efficient and easy to understand.

No visit would be complete without a trip to the top of the almost 1,000 feet tall Eiffel tower; there are only a few places in the city where
it isn't visible. At night, it comes alive with lights that have to be seen to be believed; if you are really enthusiastic you can take a tour
where the guide will tell you how this beautiful tower was built. You can now learn French online and be able to talk to the guide and local residents in their native language

A trip down the Champs Elysees is encouraged when you visit Paris as this is the city's most famous street; it's where you will find all the
top class hotels, shops and restaurants. This is considered a more exclusive and busy area of the city; the exclusive five star hotels situated
in this more select part of the city might be out of most visitors' price range.

This city is also the home to the renowned Louvre Museum; it holds in excess of 300,000 pieces of art, which cannot possibly be seen in a
single visit. On a Paris short stay vacation it would be easy to spend entire weekend here; many of the world's art collections are housed here,
which includes the renowned 'Mona Lisa'. What makes Paris special is the number of artists that have been attracted to this great capital; these
include Monet and Picasso who very fortunately left some of their work here for all to enjoy.

The famous 19th century edifice built on Napoleons instructions, the Arc de Triomphe, is also in Paris; the names of his generals are engraved
on its surface and another of those 'must have' photo land marks. The Arc is the focal point of the city and contains an observatory to view the
local area; in particular those obtained along the lanes that lead from it.

Of course this article can only give a small sample places to visit; although no trip would be complete without seeing these, they are
probably best viewed as part of a guided tour, some of which are actually free. A short stay in Paris will definitely be a busy one even if only
a few sights are visited; that would require a longer visit as you probably won't have time to visit the Gothic churches and castles in only a
few days.