19
Nov
There’s so much to see and do in Paris that it’s difficult knowing where to start. Here’s a handy guide to the top attractions in the city to help you plan and make the most of your stay in this beautiful city.
A great way to save money if you’re planning to visit lots of museums and attractions in Paris is to buy a Paris Museum Pass, which can be obtained at any participating establishment. It gives access to over 60 attractions and as well as saving you money it will allow you to jump the queues. See www.parismuseumpass.fr for details.
Another important point when planning your visit is that most museums and galleries in Paris are closed one day per week, usually Monday or Tuesday. Also, some museums offer free or reduced admission on Sundays.
Admission fees given below are for full price adult tickets.
Cathédrale de Notre Dame
Description: The Cathédrale de Notre Dame is a magnificent Gothic cathedral in l’île de la Cité, the oldest part of Paris. It was completed in 1345 after two centuries of construction work. In the crypt are foundations from the earliest part of the buildings and from previous Roman buildings on the site. There are wonderful views all over Paris from the top of its two towers.
Location: place du Parvis Notre Dame, l’île de la Cité
Métro: Cité
Opening hours: 07.45 to 18.45 Monday to Saturday (towers open 09.00 to 17.15)
Admission: donation only
Website: www.cathedraledeparis.com
La Tour Eiffel
Description: The Eiffel Tower is the most famous symbol of Paris. When it was built at the end of the 19th century for the Paris Exposition it was the tallest building in the world. Take the lift and/or stairs up to the top for fabulous views of the city.
Location: Champ de Mars
Métro: Bir Hakeim, Trocadéro, École Militaire
Opening hours: open daily throughout year – January to June and September to December 09.30 to 23.45 (last admission to top 22:30), July and August 09.00 to 00.45 (last admission to top 23.00)
Admission: 11€ to the top
Website: www.tour-eiffel.fr
L’Arc de Triomphe
Description: This grand triumphal arch in the centre of Place d’Étoile was built by Napoléon to honour the French Army. It’s a war memorial commemorating those who have died in various battles and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier with its eternal flame lies underneath it.
Location: place de l’étoile
Métro: Charles de Gaulle Étoile
Opening hours: open daily throughout year – April to September 10.00 to 23.00, October to March 10.00 to 22.30 (last admission 30 minutes before closing)
Admission: 8€
Website: www.monum.fr/prehome/prehome.dml
Musée du Louvre
Description: The Louvre Palace is a spectacular Renaissance building and the famous museum within it contains one of the most important collections of fine art in the world. Collections: Egyptian, Roman and Oriental antiquities, European painting from 12th to 19th century, Leonardo’s Mona Lisa.
Location: rue de rivoli
Métro: Palais Royal Musée du Louvre
Opening hours: 09.00 to 18.00 every day except Tuesday
Admission: 8.50€, admission free on the first Sunday of every month
Website: www.louvre.fr
Musée d’Orsay
Description: This art gallery is an impressive collection of art from 1850-1950. Collections: impressionism (Renoir, Monet, Degas), post-impressionism (Van Gogh, Gaugin, Toulouse-Lautrec, Cézanne.
Location: 1 rue de bellechasse
Métro: Solférino
Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday 09.30 to 18.00, Thursday 09.30 to 21.45, closed on Mondays
Admission: 7.50€, admission free on the first Sunday of every month
Website: www.musee-orsay.fr
Musée National d’art Moderne
Description: France’s national collection of modern art. It’s located in the Pompidou Centre. Notable artists: Yves Klein, Matisse, Picasso, Miró and Warhol.
Location: place Georges Pompidou
Métro: Hôtel de Ville, Châtelet, Rambuteau
Opening hours: daily except Tuesdays 11.00 to 21.00 (last admission 20.00)
Admission: 10€ (ticket includes entry to all museums and exhibitions within the Centre Pompidou)
Website: www.centrepompidou.fr
Musée Carnavalet
Description: This history museum traces the development of the city of Paris from Roman times to the present day. The displays are fascinating and captivating and the Renaissance palace in which it is housed is also impressive.
Location: 23 rue de Sevigné
Métro: St Paul
Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday 10.00 to 17.30, closed on Mondays
Admission: 8€
Website: www.carnavalet.paris.fr
Hôtel des Invalides
Description: this splendid building was commissioned by Louis XIV as a hospital for injured soldiers. It’s now a military history museum, Musée de l’Armée. Collections: armour, swords, guns, uniforms, canons, standards and flags. Napoleon’s tomb is located within the complex and there’s a section in the museum containing artefacts that belonged to him. The section on World War Two is also very interesting.
Location: place des invalides
Métro: Varenne, Latour-Maubourg, St François-Xavier, Invalides
Opening hours: open daily except on the first Monday of every month, 10.00 to 17.00 October to March, 10.00 to 18.00 April to September
Admission: 7.50€
Website: www.invalides.org
November 19th, 2008 in
Main Continent | tags:
Europe,
France |
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19
Nov
Bird Watching is a great way to escape the rat race and be one with nature. Alas, your bird watching experiences can fade with time. The best way to prevent this is to keep a bird watching journal for your sightings and trips.
Bird Watching Journals
Take a minute to give some consideration to your most recent bird watching experience. What sticks out in your mind? Now think about the first time you ever went bird watching. Undoubtedly, you remember few things about the geography, people you went with, every bird sighted and so on. The experiences you’ve forgotten are lost to time. If you had kept a bird watching journal, this wouldn’t be the case.
There are famous instances of people keeping journals throughout time. Of course, Anne Frank’s Diary is the best example. In her diary, Anne kept a running commentary of the two years her family spent hiding from the Nazis. While your bird watching experiences better be more lighthearted, keeping a journal will let you remember them as the years pass.
A good bird watching journal combines a number of characteristics. First, it should be compact so you don’t have to take up unnecessary space for other things. Second, it should have a case to protect it from rain, spills and so on. Third, the journal should contain blank areas to write your notes. Fourth, the journal should contain cue spaces to remind you to keep notes on specific things. Cues should include:
1. Who you went birding with,
2. Where you stayed and if you enjoyed it,
3. Who you met and contact information for them,
4. The geographic and weather conditions, and
5. The birds you sighted and added to your life list.
At the end of the trip, you should be able to get the following from your journal:
1. Contact information for other bird watchers and people you met,
2. Enough detail to provide you or a friend with a guide if you travel to the location a second time.
3. Memories to reflect upon years later, and
4. Something to pass on to your children and grandchildren.
To get the most out of your bird watching journal, you should write in it during and immediately after birding. Every sighting brings new experiences even if you’re just sitting in your backyard.
Bird watching is a great way to commune with nature. Make sure to preserve the experience.
19
Nov
The Loire Valley offers goat’s cheese enthusiasts a paradise. It is a perfect location for a holiday meandering alongside the Loire River, visiting famous historic castles, cheese producers and caves for wine tasting and even staying in a boutique chateau hotel if you chose. This region is justly called the Garden of France, and is sprinkled with majestic Renaissance castles open to the public and an abundance of fine wines and cheeses. Chateau du Guerinet near Blois is a perfect base for a cheese lover’s Loire Valley holiday.
The Loire Valley is the starting point in the origins of goat’s-milk cheese in France. In the eighth Century, the Saracens of Arab descent were repelled at Poitiers. When they were expelled from France they abandoned their goats and left the recipes for making incredible cheese from goats milk.
The lovely villages on either side of the Loire River produce goat’s cheeses of different sizes and shapes. There are six AOC (Appellation d’Origine Controlee) cheeses: Sainte-Maure de Touraine, Selles-sur-Cher, Valencay, Pouligny-Saint-Pierre, Chabichou du Poitou and Crottin de Chavignol. There are currently 42 French cheeses with AOC status. An AOC label indicates quality and guarantees that a product has been made within a specified region of France following established methods of production.
Crottin de Chavignol known as Chavignol is knobbly and hard black on the surface, and the taste is a balance of sourness, sweetness and a little salt to be enjoyed with a glass of Sancerre de Chavignol.
Pouligny-Saint-Pierre nicknamed the Eiffel Tower or Pyramid because of its shape. The rind is of natural mould. The pate is a soft moist white and crumbly. The taste is at first sour and salty followed by sweetness. This cheese goes wonderfully with a glass of Sancerre or Reuilly.
Sainte-Maure de Touraine is a greay-blue mould covered long truncated log of goat’s cheese. The cheese is mature, balanced, round with salt, sourness and an aroma of walnut. This cheese is made all year long and is beautifully complimented by a glass of Chinon or Vouvray.
Valencay cheese looks like a small black pyramid. It is purported that the shape of the cheese was originally a perfect pyramid. But when Napoleon returned from a disastrous campaign in Egypt he stopped at Valencay Castle, the cheese reminded him of the Egyptian pyramids and in a rage he loppedoff the top of the cheese with his sword. The Valencay goat’s cheese has a rind of natural mould, covered with salted powdered charcoal and goes nicely with a glass of Quincy, Reuilly or Sancerre.
Chabichou du Poitou has a thin rind of yellow, white or blue mould and a delicate slightly sweet flavour. Sancerre and Pouilly Fume wines go nicely with this cheese.
Selles-sur-Cher also has a rind of natural mould covered with powdered and salted charcoal. The pate is hard at first, then heavy, most and clay-like as it melts and blends in the mouth. The taste is slightly sour and salty with a touch of sweetness. A glass of Sancerre or Pouilly Fume accompanies this cheese wonderfully.
What better way to enjoy these cheeses than meandering through the Loire Valley visiting historic castles, maybe a hot-air balloon ride in the morning, gourmet lunch in village bistros, meeting wine and cheese producers sampling their products and returning at night to a inviting friendly boutique chateau hotel. Don’t just visit a french chateau - stay in one. You will be amazed. Guests get to truly experience the grandeur of living in a french chateau. Make your next holiday a gourmet chateau holiday in the beautiful Loire Valley. If you love goat’s cheese you will not regret it.
18
Nov
Why is Disney World such a great vacation spot? Today, there are millions of people that go here to vacation each year. When we say millions, we mean on estimates of 12 million per year as of 2005. But, what makes this place so magical and wonderful of a location to travel to? There are many things that will inspire you to make this one of your family’s travel destinations year after year. Here are some that you may not have thought about before.
• The Extras: Disney World offers plenty of extras that you will not know about until you are there. Most of the time, the parks will have a fabulous fireworks display each night to dazzle you. Sitting in the warm night air watching the fireworks explode is wonderful.
• The Lodging: It is highly recommended that you stay on the resort itself in one of the great themed hotels. Not only do these hotels dazzle you with their luxury accommodations (they don’t cost much more than a standard hotel either) they also offer many small things. You get free transportation to the parks, world class care and a wide range of various themes to choose from. Consider staying at a wilderness lodge for a campground feel. Or, go to a location where you will see Mickey and friends each day.
• Characters and More: Of course you will see all the best Disney characters on your trip. But, you will also see some of the best of the best when it comes to experiences with them. Care to have dinner with the Princess at the Castle tonight? Perhaps you would like to have breakfast with Chip and Dale? You can find all sorts of fun like experiences with these characters that are just fun.
• The People: It is said that everyone that works at Disney World is happy and really that is the case. The ‘cast members’ as they are called really do go out of their way to please you. Perhaps you can even get a special thank you in the way of a free stroller or a free ice cream, just because. Ask any of them to help you and you will have what you need.
• Something For Everyone: It is hard to believe that you can go on a vacation that really does offer something for everyone. That is what Disney World offers. Learn about the world, space, and science. Enjoy world class foods from everywhere. Go on some of the best rides on the planet. Enjoy yourself the way that you want to.
Of course, Disney World also is continuously offering a wide range of discounts including free dining plans, lowered prices on lodging and a wide range of other promotions that happen at various times of the year. These things all make this one of the best places in the world to come to spend your vacation. It takes only a few minutes to find your place at Disney World. With so much to see and do and experience, there is little time to waste!
