I have now visited Paris twice and almost by accident I have indulged in two clichés, the first time I visited I stumbled in on Bastille Day and was treated to an amazing firework display whilst standing on the banks of the Seine. The second time I took my girlfriend there for Valentines Day and had the most fantastic time strolling along the river from Notre Dame to the Eiffel Tower. There is so much to do that I would have no problems having another trip here.

There are many points of interest along the river banks, and it is two of Paris most famous sights that captivated me most, it can some times be disappointing to see ‘world class’ attractions however the Eiffel Tower and Musée du Louvre were just enchanting. Having now visited many of the great grand museums of the Western World (Pergamon, British, Smithsonian etc.) I feel that the Louvre has the distinction of, in my humble opinion, being the best of the bunch. The exhibits are world class and the way they are displayed is sensational, it manages to combine both a classical Palace setting with fine contemporary architecture and in a way that is hard to beat, and I only see about a 5th of the collection.

However the highlight of the city for me has to be the Eiffel Tower, I wanted to not like it, I wanted to be unimpressed but I just couldn’t, it is massive and an exceptional feat of engineering worth of being one of the worlds most famous sights.

This is added to by a great architectural heritage, it is one of the great cities for art nouveau (iif you are a fan it is well worth hunting out the house at No. 29 Avanue Rapp near the Eiffel tower!), there are exceptional modern buildings, especially Institut du Monde Arabe, and the plasticy wedding cake like concoction that is Sacré Cour. Added to this are great cafes and restaurants (Quartier Latin and Montmatre) and heaps of other sites too numerous to list, including the exceptionally ugly UNESCO headquarters.

Paris is a world class city that deserves a weekend of any ones time.