Paris

The monument was commissioned in 1806 by Emperorer Napolean I, but took until 1836 to be finished. The huge arch stands at 51m high and 45m wide; the second largest in the world. It contains the names of the generals who served during Napoleans reign engraved in the structure. The arch was large enough for Charles Godrey to fly a plane through in 1919 in honour of the airmen killed in World War I!

Beneath the monument, though not visited by myself lies the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from World War I, where a commemorative service is held annually on Armistice Day.

The roundabout surrounding the Arc de Triomphe is known as the Place de L'Etoile, and is a place of driving madness!

Standing on the bank of the River Siene, the elegant cathedral of Notre Dame dominantes the local view. The gothic cathedral of Notre Dame is the seat of the Archbishop of Paris. Construction of the cathedral began in 1163, taking in many different architects and styles until completion in 1345. The Western Facade shown in the images is divided into three levels. (i) Bottom containing thearches - Portal to the Last Judgement, Portal to the Virgin and the Portal to St Anne; (ii) Middle section containing the Kings' Gallery and the West Rose Window; (iii) Top section containing the Galerie des Chimieres and the South Tower

The tower was built from 1887 to 1889 for the Universal Exhibition that celebrated the French Revolution. Named after its designer, the engineer, Gustave Eiffel it stands at 324m high and contains 1665 steps. The co-arcitects were Emile Naugier, Maurice Koechlin and Stephen Sauvestre. The public can reach the summit from the second platform by taking a lift, providing stunning views of Paris. The tower is presently used for transmitting FM radio and TV signals.

Upon German occupation of France in 1940, the lift cables were cut, meaning that Hitler would need to climb all of the steps to the top. Lift cables were thought to be hard to acquire during the war, however, within hours of the Germans departure the lifts were operational!

The Louvre has many distinctions - it is the largest, oldest, most famous and most important art gallery and museum in the world. It holds Leonardo da Vinci's paintings 'Mona Lisa', 'The Virgin and Child with St Anne' and 'Madonna of the Rocks'. The Louvre began life as a royal castle in 1190. During the 14th century it became a palace for arts, before being later torn down and converted to a proper palace. In 1535, Pierre Lescot started construction of the existing Louvre, however the addition of various wings, rooms and galleries ordered by different monarchs meant that it was not until the 17th century that construction finished.

The glass pyramid acting as the entrance to the Louvre was constructed in 1989 and is known as the Louvre Pyramid.

The Obelisk of Luxor was a gift to France from the viceroy of Egypt, Mehmet Ali, in 1829. The monolith stands at 23m high and is constructed from pink granite. The monolith is decorated with heiroglyphics depicting the reigns of two pharoahs, Ramses II and Ramses III. Originally it marked the entrance of the Amon Temple at Luxor, 3300 years ago. It was finally erected in 1833 in the Place de la Concorde.