Whatever season of the year is chosen for my travel holiday in Paris, the magic of her charm cannot fail to enchant. Winter in Paris is lively and stimulating, spring is indeed traditionally lovely, and in high summer the city is bustling with tourist. But autumn, when the leaves on the trees begin to turn the lovely colour of burnished gold and the shops and theatres re-open for the new season, and the sun is warm but not unpleasantly hot for sight-seeing, is in ideal time for a city holiday.
In my travel holiday in Paris is divided in two by the Seine. On the north or right bank of the river are the Champs-Elysees, one of the most beautiful avenues in Europe, the Arc de Triomphe, the Place de la Concorde, The Grands Boulevards, the Rue de Rivoli (excellent for buying silk scarves, jewellery, scent and other presents to bring back home), the Tuileries, the Louvre (the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo are among the most famous works displayed) and Montmartre.
On the south or left bank you will find the Latin Quarter, the Sorbonne and the Luxembourg Gardens, St. Germain de Pres, beloved of writers and students, the Invalides, where Napoleon lies buried, and the Eiffel Tower. To the West, lies the Bois de Boulogne. And on the Ile de la Cite in the very heart of Paris is the Cathedral of Notre-Dame.
But apart from visiting the main places of interest listed in the guidebooks, there are so many enchanthing ways of passing the time in Paris. A trip on the Seine by bateau-mouche, with lunch of dinner on board, is the pleasantest of experiences, for example. And on the river quays, particularly those in the vicinity of Notre-Dame, the bouquinistes display a tempting array of books and water-colours to browse throught at your leisure. Now that Les Halles–the markets–have moved to the outskirts, a visit to the Marais quarter means not onion soup at a market cafe but the great landmarks of twentieth-century art collected at the new Centre Georges Pompidou. And you can still enjoy the passtime that never seems to pall for visitor or Parisian alike-simply sitting at a pavement cafe table, drinking coffe or an aperitif, and watching the world go by.
