Paris

Paris

Paris is the capital city of France and is located in the north central part of the country. The site of today's city, along the Seine, some 375km upstream from where it flows into the English Channel, was inhabited as early as 7600BC. The modern city expanded from the island and well beyond to both banks of the Seine. Paris, one of the eight départements of the Île-de-France administrative region, is centrally located in the rich agricultural region known as the Paris Basin. It is the most important commercial and cultural center in the country. The location of Paris, at the crossroads of both water and land routes of importance not only to France but also to Europe, has had a lasting influence on the growth of the city. The ship-shaped Île de la Cité is the historic heart of the city, located in the Seine River in the center of Paris. The island is about 10 streets long and 5 streets wide. Eight bridges connect it to the banks of the river, and a ninth bridge leads to Île Saint-Louis, the smaller island that is found to the southeast. The Pont Neuf, built between 1578 and 1604, is the westernmost bridge. In spite of its name, it is the oldest of the bridges in Paris. The bridge has five arches on the left bank and seven on the right, supported in the middle by the tip of the island. The Cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris is located at the eastern end of the Île de la Cité. It is situated in a place that Parisians have always dedicated to the exercise of religious rites. The city's Gallo-Roman boatmen built their Jupiter altar there, and after Christianity was established, a church was built on the site of the temple.