Rivoli street runs from the Place de la Bastille to the Place de la Concorde along the Seine and is considered one of the brightest achievements of Napoleon on the issue of city planning, although it was completed during the reign of Louis Philippe. The authors of the project on construction of Rue de Rivoli were well-known architects Fontaine and Percier.

Small rectangular Square of Pyramids, surrounded with beautiful buildings with arcades, is a nice adornment of the street. And in the center of the square there is an equestrian statue of the national hero of France – Jeanne d’Arc (author – Fremiet, 1874).

Today there are numerous boutiques, shops selling traditional souvenirs of Paris at the arcade houses, located along the Tuileries Gardens. Between the Pyramids and Castiglione street the famous Manege des Tuileries was situated, which had been given to Paris Constituent Assembly in 1789. Exactly in this building the Republic was declared in September 1792 as well as the death sentence to the King Louis XVI.

At various times many famous people of France and Europe loved to rent apartments on Rue de Rivoli. In our days the street attracts thousands of tourists from around the world with its historical splendor.

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In this article we would like to pay our attention to such phenomena as old Parisian streets and to tell about most known of them.

One of the most known Parisian streets is Rue de Rivoli which is a symbol of time of Napoleonic Empire. Rue de Rivoli has appeared thanks to Napoleon emperor’s order. He decided to change the shape of the city, having cleaned the ground from monasteries and replaced them with the arcades seen in Italy.

Rue Rivoli takes its beginning from Place de la Concorde, lies along Tuileries, northern part of the well-known Louvre, and reaches Marais.

Rue de Rivoli arcades are well-known all over the world for a long time and attract attention of tourists who are visiting Paris. What is remarkable, the street with the arcades became a place of “pilgrimage” for foreigners in the middle of the nineteenth century most of whom were representatives of the Great Britain. So, during those far times representatives of the British aristocracy without fail included visiting Rue de Rivoli in their schedule of stay in Paris making their continental tourist trips. Standard for the Englishman in Paris of that time was considered to stop in Meurice, to visit English bookshop Galignani every morning to get a fresh release of the newspaper, and for traditional British tea drinking it was nothing better than salon Angelina. All these places have successfully survived centuries and please many tourists till now.

A little to the north from Rue de Rivoli one more well-known street of Paris settles down – street Saint-Honore which is as long as Rue de Rivoli. For walking travelers at all extent of the street, beginning from Madeleine to the well-known Place Vendom, houses of such legendary persons for France, as Molière and Robespierre appear. In the street Saint-Honore there are a lot of famous buildings are situated, among them is one of the oldest drugstores of a city and legendary shop of tobacco products La Civette, hotel Costes highly popular among representatives of Hollywood.

And that important element which makes Rue de Rivoli and Saint-Honore related is the Place Vendom which is in some distance from both streets but invariably associates with them. It has appeared in the second half of the seventeenth century only to be decorated with a majestic statue of “king-sun” Louis XIV on a horse made in bronze. And in a consequence the area has received its statue and many other components, and the recognition of the area as one of the most beautiful in Paris. The local architectural ensemble consists of houses constructed in popular at that time Baroque style which is recognizable for different arches and a great number of penthouses. A remarkable fact is that the word “penthouse” or “mansard” is obliged by its origin to architect François Mansart – the “father” of these constructions. These most beautiful houses continue to please visitors with their magnificence up till now. But the fate of the statue is rather cruel: it has staid for exactly hundred years until the furious crowd of revolutionaries has dumped it from its pedestal in 1792. Today its place is occupied by the well-known column casted out of trophy armory devoted by Napoleon to the victory in the battle under Austerlitz.

Certainly, it is impossible to describe all delights of these places, therefore, visiting Paris, find time and have a look at Rue Rivoli and Sent-Honore, and also the Place Vendom with your own eyes. Believe us, you will not be disappointed!

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For those (no matter where they come from, cold Russia and Canada, or hot Australia and Argentina) who have luck to see Paris in winter, the city remains in memory as magnificent, fantastic and shrouded in aura of romanticism.

Fast approach of Christmas and New Year’s holidays in the capital of France is already felt by the end of November. It is necessary to notice that for Frenchmen, as well as for the majority of inhabitants of the Western Europe, Christmas is the most significant holiday of the year, and therefore they prepare for it with the big scope.

So, at this time the Champs-Élysées from the Arc de Triomphe to Place Charles de Gaulle (for those who do not remember, there was such a well-known French president-guerrilla) are decorated by the most beautiful light equipment. For your disposal here are forty five (45!) kilometers of garlands, more than hundred and thirty thousand of bulbs, more than six thousand of special lamps-flashes which are lighting up everything around.

The closer the approach of a long-awaited holiday – the more beautiful fur-trees appear in streets of Paris. Like everything in this city, they are dressed in elegant “dresses” from local couturiers. Ten thousand Christmas-New Year trees settle down on the city streets as well as in all restaurants, shops, hotels and houses of Parisians.

If you happen to be in Paris during this remarkable time, you can visit a wonderful exhibition of Christmas trees in Rue de Rivoli (the street of Rivoli) where the celebratory fur-trees are displayed all decorated by designers, stylists, dressers and even confectioners and jewelers representing the well-known brands from every corner of the globe.

For junior tourists it might be a great attraction to visit one of the Parisian puppet theatres where Christmas scenes are performed.

The big square near the Paris mayor’s house decorated by statues of one and a half tens of the most well-known Parisians is the most vivid place during the winter holidays. Lots of grandiose dramatized Christmas plays take place in a huge marquee in this square.

For fans to take a look at vicinities of winter Paris from the height of the bird’s flight, skating at the same time, there is an ice skating rink opened on Tour Eiffel (the Eiffel Tower), at fifty seven meters height. As they say: all for you!

Besides, all other sights of Paris are ready to please city visitors all year round.

In spite of the fact that Parisian streets will be filled by “aroma” of Christmas this time of the year, have pleasure in visiting the most significant places of the French capital, after all it is worth it.

The Avenue des Champs-Élysées and the Arc de Triomphe, Montmartre and the Louvre, Notre Dame de Paris- all this is only a top of an iceberg – the name to which is Paris!

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