Paris is the capital of France. It’s known as the City of Light because of its beauty.

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Paris is the capital of France. It’s known as the City of Light because of its beauty. It’s a place to enjoy great food, great art, and great buildings. It’s also a place to sit back and enjoy life in a sidewalk café.

For hundreds of years, artists and writers have celebrated Paris. Many have gone to live there. Visitors come to admire the city. It’s a center of fashion and style. It’s also the business, financial, and industrial center of France.

THE EIFFEL TOWER

The Eiffel Tower is the best-known landmark in Paris. France built this lacy, iron tower for the Paris World’s Fair of 1889. The fair honored the French Revolution that began in Paris 100 years earlier.

The Eiffel Tower rises nearly 1,000 feet (300 meters). Elevators take visitors to the top. At the time it was built, the tower was the tallest structure in the world. The tower was named for its designer, Gustave Eiffel.

CITY ON THE SEINE

The river Seine runs through Paris and cuts it in half. The part of Paris on the north side of the river is called the Right Bank. The part on the south side is called the Left Bank.

Most of the businesses and large stores in Paris are on the Right Bank. Many government buildings and the University of Paris are on the Left Bank. The university is in the Latin Quarter. Students at the university originally spoke Latin, giving the neighborhood its name.

The oldest part of Paris is on the Île de la Cité, an island in the Seine. Notre Dame cathedral is on the island. Workers began to build the cathedral in 1163.

BUILDINGS AND MONUMENTS

There’s a lot to see in Paris. You could take a walk down the Champs-Élysées. This wide, tree-lined boulevard is one of the most famous streets in the world.

At one end of the Champs-Élysées is the Arc de Triomphe (Arch of Triumph). This monument was built to honor the victories of French emperor Napoleon I. At the other end is the Place de la Concorde (Square of Peace) with its huge fountains and statues.

The Louvre is an old palace in the middle of Paris. It’s also one of the world’s great museums. Leonardo da Vinci’s famous painting, the Mona Lisa, is here. If you like paintings by the French impressionists, be sure to visit the Musée d’Orsay. This museum used to be a railroad station.

When you’re tired, sit for a while in one of Paris’s pleasant parks. The Tuileries Gardens are on the Right Bank, and the Luxembourg Gardens are on the Left Bank.