Paris Is Peace of Mind

By William Gabie

Very few cities in Europe can compete with Paris as a romantic destination; ideally situated along the banks of the river Seine. For most people visiting Paris, a short stay is often the way they first see the city; you can never become bored in this beautiful city.

A city famous for its fabulous architecture, good food, wine, street markets and galleries; plus sights like the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre and many other places that are havens for tourists, both home grown and international. Fortunately for tourists, Paris has a first rate transportation system; there is an excellent underground system called the Metro which runs regular trains into the city center and is very 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. You can be assured of an even more beautiful sight if you visit in the evening when it is illuminated; guided tours add to the thrill as you get to peek into history on how it was constructed.

A walk along the Champs Elysees is essential when you visit Paris; it will present you with many famous designer shops and good restaurants. This avenue may be select but it attracts large numbers of visitors daily; the average tourist may find the accommodation expensive but more modest hotels can be found away from this area.

This city is also the home to the renowned Louvre Museum; it houses over three hundred thousand exhibits but not all of them are ever on display at the same time. There are so many exhibits here they cannot all be viewed during a short stay in Paris; approximately 8 million visitors a year come to see the Venus de Milo and the Mona Lisa, both of which are on display.
Many well known artists spent years of their lives in Paris; painters like Monet and Picasso spent many years here and a large number of their art works can be seen in Paris today.

Paris is also the home of the equally famous Arc de Triomphe which Napoleon had constructed in the early part of the 19th century; the names of his generals engraved upon it to honor them and his troops. A little known fact is that there's a viewing observatory built into the building allowing the whole area to be viewed; it stands in the place where the city's main avenues begin including the Champs Elysees.

This city has a huge variety of places to visit, many of these have not even mentioned here; but these should certainly not to be missed because many offer regular guided tours, some at little or no charge at all. On your short say in Paris you will only see a small sample of what is available for a visitor; anything else on your 'to see' list can wait for your next trip.

Experience Paris, even if its only for a short stay.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=William_Gabie

Is Paris Really The Most Romantic City In The World?

By Amy Graybeal

This week's poll asked our community what type of location they would prefer for a romantic getaway. The results beg the question: is Paris really the most romantic city in the world?

47% said they would prefer a beach getaway. Mountains and countryside locations tied for second place at 21% each. And finally, tourist cities brought up the rear at 11%. While Paris may be considered the city of love, our users say they prefer a beach vacation over a tourist city. So what are couples looking for in a romantic vacation?

Couples are looking for time away from the hectic lives they live. They're looking to reconnect. They want to refocus to what matters in life - and that's love.

Beaches and other low stress surroundings like mountains and countryside help set the tone for a romantic getaway focused on each other - not sightseeing, schedules, and obligations.

But regardless of location, any vacation can be romantic. Here are some planning tips to help kindle the romance on your next vacation:

1. Make the journey comfortable. There's nothing worse than starting a vacation with stress and bad tempers. Try to mitigate as many unpleasant travel issues as possible. If you're traveling by air, try packing warm socks, blankets, pillows, Tylenol, snacks, and any other comfort item you can get past security.

2. Leave some unplanned time in your schedule. Don't plan out the vacation like a work schedule. Leave time for items of interest or just to lounge around. Romantic vacations should be about connecting with your partner so leave some empty time to do just that!

3. Plan a surprise romantic treat. Many hotels these days offer some type of romantic offering whether it be turndown service, spa treatments, flowers in the room, or just Champagne and strawberries. Plan a special romantic surprise upon arrival to set a nice romantic tone for the vacation.

4. Adjust your frame of mind. Before you even leave the house, get into the right frame of mind. Make reconnecting your central thought and loving your partner your central feeling. If you're not going to be open, honest, loving, caring, thoughtful, happy - it really defeats the purpose of going.

Amy is the Founder & President of Magic of Romance, Inc

http://www.magicofromance.com

Magic of Romance features free romantic ideas, travel for lovers, and advice on relationships. She attended the Business School at Georgia Tech. She currently resides in Sandy Springs. She enjoys discovering new travel destinations, reading new books with a good cup of coffee, and watching movies.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Amy_Graybeal

A Trip to France - Paris

By Iuri Tarabanov

Paris is a marvelous city, simply wonderful and beautiful. It is called the Capital of the World, and this is true only because it is being visited by all the people from all the places of the world. Actually, the crowds on the streets consist i think mostly of the tourists that can be easily recognized by the thick cameras on their necks and amazed glances constantly thrown around.

The locals are quite calm though and I would say – not pretty fond of the tourists. Though I did not meet any hostility myself personally from the locals, but they say that it is quite easy to annoy a Frenchman from Paris just asking something like «Where can I find the Eiffel Tower here?». He would probably answer you in French, because the French people are even at the top of the impolite tourist rating when they travel themselves – they try to speak their native language even abroad in the hotels and on the streets.

The city itself is gorgeous, very proud of itself and this is earned. Almost every building has it's own history and is quite old. You won't see actually any skyscrapers in the central parts of the city except one lonely black tower near one of the railway stations and of course the Eiffel Tower. The locals are very proud of the old building and overall the old shape of the city. That is why even the construction of the Eiffel Tower in the 19th century has raised a great complaints of the locals because they thought that this «monster of metal» destroys the original shape of the historically rich city.

But the tower was built for some technological exhibition as the monstrous gate to it. And it remained, in spite of the protests. And with the course of time, the commercial effect of it's existence prevailed over the complaints and it got into the everyday life of the France. Even the real estate costs almost double price if you can see the tower from your windows.

The modern business skyscrapers are also part of the modern Paris life, but the business quarter is located a little bit aside, at the border of the city and is called «Defence». And these skyscrapers are really huge. I have never been in New York or any other city with traditional business parts full of skyscrapers, but I was really impressed, for the first time in my life I have seen such tall building in real and I think even the Empire State Building won't impress me much after those. There is also one strange building in the middle of the district in the shape of arc and you can get on the top of it with two elevators and the look from out there is just wonderful – especially in the night. I have taken a couple of outrageous pictures with a DSLR-Camera with one minute exposure.

Did you ever see how do they park their cars in Paris? I am not sure if they do it in the same way in other French cities, but that was really funny. There were 2 cars with quite a lot of space between them to park in. And a man with the VW Golf, which is a pretty short car, wanted to park in. You would say – it is a piece of cake, what is the problem? But it was even worse – he has driven the Golf between the cars backwards, pretty slowly, but absolutely without looking into the mirrors. Half a meter, 30 cm., 10 cm., bump! Only after he has bumped the car that stood in the back, he decided to switch to the first gear and put the car straight. But this should have also be done with the feeling... and sound! He has stopped moving forward only when he heard the bump with the front car. After that he released the gas and has let his car roll a couple of centimeters back, went out of the car and gone away, as if nothing happened. After that I have tried to find a single car without scratches on bumpers – I did not find a single one.

So, if you want to have some fun in Paris – welcome, but not with your own car.
Have fun in this wonderful world.

Iuri Tarabanov writes about interesting travel experiences. His Travel Deals site is http://www.travelime.com