Paris is the capital of France. It lies in the heart of a vast sedimentary basin with fertile soils and a temperate climate, the Parisian basin, on a loop of the Seine river, between the confluence of the Seine with the Marne and Oise rivers. Its inhabitants are called the Parisians. Paris is also the capital of the Île-de-France region and the only French commune which is at the same time a department. A central commune of the Greater Paris Metropolis, created in 2016, it is divided into twenty boroughs, such as the cities of Lyon and Marseille. The State has special prerogatives exercised by the Paris Prefect of Police.
The most populous city in France, it is fourth among the European urban areas behind Moscow, Istanbul and London and the 29th most populated city in the world. Paris had a population of 2.21 million on 1 January 2015. The Paris conurbation developed widely during the 20th century, gathering 10.71 million inhabitants on 1 January 2015, and its urban area (the conurbation and the peri-urban suburbs) had 12.53 million inhabitants.
Paris city of light: First stage
First act. In the seventeenth century, the capital of the Kingdom of France was already gangrénée by a well known evil of our Western societies, crime. Ironically, it was Louis XIV, already nicknamed the Sun King and his minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert, who studied the means of combating insecurity in Paris. Louis XIV and his minister appointed in 1667 then a certain Gilbert Nicolas de la Reynie as lieutenant general of the Police. He then had the brilliant idea of lighting up the more dissatisfied districts of Paris. This is to prevent thieves and robbers from hiding in the darkness. He was one of the first to establish a direct link between insecurity and darkness. It was then quite naturally that he had the major axes illuminated with lanterns and torches. But that is not all. He also appealed to the people by asking them to put candles or oil lamps on the windowsills.
Paris city of light "the apogee of a capital".
Second act. It is with the discovery of gas and its many applications that everything will accelerate. With this technical progress Paris was able to truly become the city of light, known and recognized throughout the world. It is therefore with Philippe Lebon, the inventor of gas lighting, that we owe the major part of the progress in urban lighting. And so it was in 1820 that the first streetlights arrived and were lit at nightfall. Forty years later, however, 56,000 streetlights were installed in the Parisian capital. A record and a real challenge. So it's a long one above. After all, it all began in the 17th century, also called the Age of Enlightenment, and was completed two centuries later. And so Paris became the city of light.
Paris city of light for eternity
Nowadays, when you make the list, you quickly realize that cities like Hong Kong, Beijing, New York, Tokyo or Moscow. When you think about it carefully, you realize that these cities are clearly more enlightened than Paris. But Paris was the first one, and as such it will remain in the collective imagination as the city of light.
Paris, the city of museums
In addition to its splendid monuments, Paris is home to rich museums. Who doesn't know the Louvre? For two centuries, this magnificent building, remarkable for its architecture with its glass Pyramid, has been one of the largest museums in the world: 35,000 works of art in 8 departments and no less than 60,600m² of rooms dedicated to permanent collections! The Musée d' Orsay, this Anicienne railway station and its monumental clock, is known for its impressive collection of Impressionist art. It will plunge you into Western artistic creation. Feel like exoticism? Visit the Quai Branly Museum which dedicates more than 39,000m2 to the permanent exhibition of a selection of reference works on the arts and cultures of Africa, the Americas, Asia and Oceania. A dive into the future? Come to La Villette where the Cité des sciences et de l' industrie welcomes young and old for a magical encounter with the innumerable secrets of science and image. The museums are so varied and numerous that it is difficult to mention them in a few lines! Whatever your interests, you'll find something to satisfy your curiosity, you'll just need time to avoid difficult choices!
The art of living à la parisienne
If Paris is visited, Paris can also be seen. You can't spend a stay in the Capital without taking advantage of its typical lifestyle! A terrace café in one of the "bistrots parisiens", a meal on the shoot in a brasserie, a sumptuous dinner in a gourmet restaurant, a foreign dish, a speciality of district like the fallafels of Saint-Michel or the Galettes Bretonnes of Montparnasse... There are many ways to eat. Paris is also the time for shopping in the capital of fashion: shopping malls and lively neighbourhoods (Halles, Montparnasse, rue de Rennes...), department stores (Spring, Galeries Lafayette, BHV...)... there is no shortage of ideas. To relax and take advantage of the calm you can, just like the Parisians, relax in one of the many parks or gardens of the city: Jardin des Plantes, Jardin des Tuileries, Jardin du Luxembourg, Parc Montsouris, Parc des Buttes-Chaumont... and so many possibilities! To explore Parisian luxury, you can explore the Champs-Elysées or visit Place Vendôme, highly evocative names! But Paris is also the party and the famous Parisian nights. Bars, pubs, nightclubs, casinos, cabarets... you just have to choose! There is no "one" way of living Paris.
Paris is finally the city of youth with nearly 330,000 students and young workers. A population whose codes are at the forefront of Parisian life: roommates, cocktail bars, brunch, etc.
This magical city, at the same time historical, modern and timeless, seduces everyone: young and old, fashion-loving, festive, adventurous, explorers, gourmets? One time one, one time the other, there is no shortage of opportunities to come and especially return to Paris!
