Trip to Paris:

Musée d'Orsay
What once was an abandoned train station, the Gare d'Orsay is now the Musée d'Orsay. The museum is devoted to all art forms from the second half of the 19th century (painting, sculpture, architecture, music and items trom everyday life). Significant Impressionist and neo-lmpressionist works are on display, as well as the creations of the more conservative academic school that was also known as Pompier in France. Art-Nouveau objects and blue-prints complement the collections.

Musée Rodin
Formerly the Hotel Biron, today, this is now the home for the Rodin Museum. In 1916, when Auguste Rodin suffered a stroke, he gave his work to the nation on the condition that it remains in the Hotel Biron. For over 10 years, the Hotel Biron which was state owned as of 1901 was rented by Rodin from 1908 until his death in 1917.

Rodin used the two rooms on the ground floor as his studio and the rooms above for his living quarters. Between I908 and I909 they were also those of the poet Rilke who was, for a period, Rodin's secretary.

Musée du Louvre
The Louvre was built by Philippe Auguste in 1204 and was originally the royal château and later transformed by Charles V between 1364 and 1380 and was entirely rebuilt from the time of François I to the 19th century.

Once upon a time a palace of French kings and princes, the Louvre is today the Palace of Arts and holds one of the richest museums in the world. Its collection, which ranges from Egyptian art of 5000 BC to nineteenth-century work, is divided into seven departments: Oriental and Islamic Antiquities; Egyptian Antiquities; Greek, Roman and Etruscan Antiquities; Painting; Sculpture; Decorative Arts; and Graphic Arts.

Musée Picasso
The Picasso museum is housed in one of the nicest mansions of the Marais district in Paris, built in the XVIIth century for Pierre Aubert Lord of Fontenay . The Hotel Salé which owes its name to the profession of its fist owner (a salt tax collector), changed hands very often, becoming a national literary repository harbouring the convent libraries seized during the Revolution, an educational establishment where Balzac completed his secondary schooling, the Ecole Centrale des Arts et Manufactures, an exhibition room for the bronze sculptor Henri Vian etc It was made a listed building in 1968, and opened his doors as The Picasso Museum in 1985 .

Devoted solely to the artist, the museum provides a unique opportunity to follow Picasso's development throughout his career, from 1894 to 1972 .

Invalides
In 1670, founded a hospital for his invalid soldiers, the King Louis XIV adopted plans by Liberal Bruant and the work started in 1671 and was finished in 1676. This hospital could house up to 4000 patients.

Beneath the dome lies two churches : One for the soldiers, and the other intended as a mausoleum for the king but now containing the mortal remains of Napoleon.

Père Lachaise

In 1803, under Napoléon, the Prefect of Paris bought it to built a cemetery. It was an incredibly successful piece of land speculation. Nicolas Frochot, the urban planner who bought the land, persuaded the civil authorities to reburied Molière, La Fontaine, Abélard and Héloïse in his new cemetery. Quickly the Père-Lachaise became the ultimate symbol for the rich and successful. Ironically Frochot, even sold a plot to the original owner for considerably more money than the price he had paid for the entire site. Even today, the rates are still extremely high. Some of the most celebrated dead have unremarkable tombs while those whose fame died with them or who were nonentities to start with have the most expressive monuments.

Palace of Versailles

Wanting to escape the busy life in Paris, and to keep the nobility under his control, Louis XIV built this chateau in which he set up home and installed the government. Louis Le Vau was commissioned to renovate and extend an old hunting lodge, Le Notre created the gardens from swamp land, and Mansart masterminded the hydraulic display of the fountains.

After the death of Louis XlV, the château was abandoned for a few years. Then Louis XV moved in in 1722. It remained the residence of the royal family until the Revolution of 1789, and at this time the furniture was sold and the pictures dispatched to the Louvre. Thereafter it fell into ruin and was nearly demolished by Louis- Philippe.

And in 1871, during the Paris Commune, it became the seat of the nationalist government, and the French parliament continued to meet in Louis XV's opera building until 1879. The restoration only began between the two world wars.

Tour Eiffel

In 1889, when the Tour Eiffel was completed, it was the tallest building in the world at 300m. The Tour Eiffel was originally built as a tempory structure to commemorate the centenary of the Revolution. And since, the Eiffel Tower has become an enduring symbol of the city of Paris. The Tour was originally built for the 1889 Exposition. This steel construction defied all traditional rules in architecture. It is now the television transmitter for the greater Paris region.

Arc de Triomphe

The Arc de Triomphe and its massive piers are decorated with bas reliefs depicting scenes trom the revolutionary era (including the First Empire). To the right on the side facing the Champs-Elysees is the Marseillaise by Rude (the departure of the volunteers to the front in 1792); to the left is Napoleon's Triumph of 1810 by Cortot. The resistance of 1814 and the Peace of 1815 are on the other side, modestly facing away from the city.

Notre Dame The major french religious building, masterpiece of gothic architecture.