My trip to Paris

After my trip to Amsterdam, I took the train down to Paris to spend a few days seeing the sights. Paris is the capital of France. It is full of lots of exciting places to see. I got to visit many of the famous landmarks in the city.

First, I went for a beautiful walk along the river that runs through Paris, which is called the Seine. There are two islands in the middle of the Seine in central Paris. One of these is called the Île de la Cité, which means "the island of the city." Historically, this island has marked the official center of Paris. On it is a huge cathedral called Notre Dame. Perhaps you have heard of the story of the Hunchback of Notre Dame? It was his job to ring the bells in the cathedral. Here is a picture of me in front of the Seine with Notre Dame in the background.

I stand alongside the Seine with Notre Dame in the background.

Workers began building Notre Dame back in the 12th century, but it took about 200 years to complete it. As you can see in the picture below, people are still working hard to clean it and restore it. This is a view of the square in front of the west side of Notre Dame. This is the spot that marks the official center of Paris.

I stand in front of the western facade of Notre Dame.

Next to Notre Dame is a bridge over the Seine called the Pont de l'Archevêché, which means "the archbishop's bridge." For the last decade or so, people have flocked to this bridge to put padlocks on it. Paris is renowned for being a very romantic city. Lots of couples who visit Paris write their names on a padlock and then lock it to the bridge, symbolizing the permanence of their commitment to each other.

Here I am in front of the "love padlocks" ("cadenas d'amour" in French) on the Pont de l'Archevêché.

Walking farther along the Seine, I came to the heart of the modern city of Paris. My first stop was at the Louvre, which is probably the most famous art museum in the world. The Louvre used to be a palace, but eventually it was converted into a museum. Visitors now enter the Louvre by going down into the largest of three glass pyramids, which were designed by a famous architect named I.M. Pei.

I stand in front of the Louvre. Behind me, you can see the glass pyramid that serves as the museum's entrance.

There are lots and lots of famous paintings in the Louvre. Probably the best known is Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa, which may even be the most famous piece of art in the entire world. One of my personal favorite pieces of art in the Louvre was an ancient marble statue displayed very prominently in the main hall by the entrance. This statue is of the Greek goddess of victory, Nike. It was discovered -- broken and headless -- on the Greek island of Samothrace in the 1860s. Nobody knows who sculpted it. Consequently, it is known by a couple of different names, including Winged Victory and Nike of Samothrace. Isn't it an impressive statue?

The statue Winged Victory on display in the Louvre.

The Louvre is the first of a string of exciting Parisian landmarks which are all in a line. In front of the Louvre is a beautiful garden called the Tuileries, which used to be a palace before the palace burned down in 1871. In front of the Tuileries is a big square called the Place de la Concorde. At the center of the square is a giant obelisk, which used to stand at the entrance to a temple complex in Luxor in Egypt.

I pose in front of the Place de la Concorde.

If you look really closely, you can see an arch in the background of the picture of the Place de la Concorde. That arch is called the Arc de Triomphe, meaning "arch of triumph," which is another Paris landmark. Workers began building the arch in 1806 to honor French soldiers who had died at war. The ruler of France at that time was a man named Napoleon, who was the emperor of France. Napoleon tried to take over all of Europe, though eventually he was defeated and sent to live in exile on a tiny island in the Atlantic called St. Helena. Even though Napoleon was overthrown, the French kept working on the arch.

I stand in front of the Arc de Triomphe.

The street that connects the Place de la Concorde with the Arc de Triomphe is known as the Champs Élysées. The Champs Élysées is one of the most famous streets in the entire world. The stores and restaurants along that street are also some of the most expensive in the world. Unfortunately, as I am a bear on a budget, all I can do is window shop.

Paris's most famous landmark is probably the Eiffel Tower. I'm sure you have heard of it. When it was built to be the entrance to the 1889 World's Fair, it was the tallest building in the world. Back then, a lot of people thought it was hideously ugly and thought that the people who built it had ruined Paris. According to legend, an author named Guy de Maupassant ate lunch at the restaurant in the Eiffel Tower every day. When he was asked why he ate there so often, he explained that, once he was inside the tower, he didn't have to look at it. Do you think it is hideously ugly? Nowadays, it is so iconic that nobody would dream of tearing it down!

I stand in front of the Eiffel Tower on the Champs de Mars.

Another exciting landmark in Paris is a building known as Les Invalides, which was built to be a retirement home for old French soldiers. Like the Eiffel Tower, it is located just off the Seine. One of the reasons people visit Les Invalides today is that it is the burial place of Napoleon. He died on St. Helena, the little island where he was exiled, but many years later his body was brought back and interred in splendor in Paris.

Behind me is Les Invalides.

I have one last picture from Paris to show you, which is a picture of me in front of an exhibition hall on the Champs Élysées called the Grand Palais (which means "grand palace" -- French is kind of similar to English sometimes). I was in Paris on kind of a windy day, so you can see the French flag on top of the building waving in the wind. The French flag is sometimes called the "tricolor" (or "tricoleur" in French -- like I said, French is often similar to English) because it has blue, white, and red stripes.

I pose in front of the Grand Palais. Do you see the French tricolor waving in the background?

Paris was a very fun city to visit because it has so many interesting and exciting sights to see. I certainly am glad that I got to go there!

--Benny