The best
way to explore any city is by walking around with the locals and checking out
how the locals live and experience their culture. Hence, we booked for the
Sandemans New Paris Free Tour where you would be taken on a guided walking tour
of Paris by a trained guide for free. At the end of the tour you may tip the
guide whatever you feel it was worth to you.
Our tour
began at Fontaine St.Michel. The Fontaine Saint-Michel is a beautiful fountain
located in Place Saint-Michel in the 5th arrondissement in Paris. It was
constructed in 1858–1860 during the French Second Empire by the architect
Gabriel Davioud.
A short
walk away was the famous Notre Dame de Paris. Notre-Dame de Paris, also known
as Notre-Dame Cathedral or simply Notre-Dame, is an historic Catholic cathedral
on the eastern half of the Île de la Cité in the fourth arrondissement of Paris.
Then we
walked along the River Seine and were impressed by the Académie Française also
known as the
French Academy. The Académie was officially established in 1635 by
Cardinal Richelieu, the chief minister to King Louis XIII. Shut down in 1793
during the French Revolution, it was reopened in 1803 by Napoleon Bonaparte. It
is the oldest of the five académies of the Institut de France. The Académie
consists of forty members, known as immortels (immortals). The body has the
task of acting as an official authority on the language and is responsible for
publishing an official dictionary of the French language.
And then we
crossed the Love lock bridge to go towards the famous Louvre Museum. To show
commitment towards one another, lovers would bring a lock to the bridge, lock
their love on the bridge and throw away the key into the Seine!
We walked
around the Louvre Museum on the outside listening to the history narrated by
our guide. After
this we walked along Rue Royale to Place de la Concorde which
is the largest square in the French capital. The center of the Place is
occupied by a giant Egyptian obelisk decorated with hieroglyphics exalting the
reign of the pharaoh Ramesses II. It was gifted by the Egyptians to the French
in the 19th century. The obelisk once was at the entrance of the Luxor Temple. It
was brought to Paris in 1833 and three years later, King Louis Philippe had it
placed in the center of Place de la Concorde, where a guillotine was during the
Revolution.
Along the
way we passed the Musée de l'Orangerie which is an art gallery of impressionist
and post-impressionist paintings. All along the Rue Royale there are sculptures
by famous sculptors.
The morning
walk in Paris was indeed very educative, fascinating and awe inspiring!