Tourism that questions...

& emphasizes contact between people

We explain what most matters about sites that are famous... or that should be

: Place de la Concorde

The Place de la Concorde is celebrated for its beauty, but its urban, historic and symbolic significance is often overlooked.

: Porte ("gate") Saint-Denis

Paris's royal entry-point, Porte Saint-Denis, is a major monument of early modern France, yet it is almost never visited.

We decode History as a detective might...

who begins with the "official story" and then follows clues. The Opéra, for example, is indeed a masterpiece, but not for the reasons that are usually given ("it is a temple of culture and there are 384 kinds of marble.") We decode its ardhitecture, décor, and impact on Paris.

•Groups & events

: The official entry draws one's eye like an arrow.

The colossal Avenue de l'Opéra and the façade's beckoning doorways incite us to climb a huge stairway, and so miss a discreet side entrance. A colonnade of nudes, whose sensuality surprises, surrounds it ...

Other visits that decode: "An art that glorifies violence" at the Renaissance Museum, "Art history, an initiation to build on" at the Louvre, "Versailles, the Sun King's way" and the esplanade in front of Notre-Dame... Almost all our historical visits, in fact, "read between the lines" in one way or another.

A city that honors the arts

: The artist respects the statue. He paints around her and leaves his can of spray-paint in hommage at her feet.

Paris is the city where the greatest number of events in the arts take place. Or so comparing the list of art exhibits, plays, concerts of all kinds, movies and movie festivals in the Officiel des spectacles, with those in Time Out New York, Time Out London, and Zitti Berlin, suggests – though the latter cities have far larger populations.

It is particularly important in the plastic arts. We explore this wealth through museum visits, art galleries, private collections and so-called "minor arts". Best of all fis the emotion when art simply sprouts up, as the photo shows.

The city attracts more artists than any other, London, New York and Berlin included. Our lessons and demonstrations, and especially, studio visits, suggest unsuspected reasons for the city's ongoing importance in art's creation.

A culture that honors its past

: A distinguished actress presents the story of the Sun King's secret queen in her Versailles salon.

: France's leading cancan choreographer explains the defiant origins of the country's most famous dance.

France has two great traditions. One is of high culture, luxury and refinement, which comes from the Court and the nobility. The other tradition, which the Revolution launched, is justice. Both remain vitally present. We explore them through a program over several days and through original performances in which artists look toward their heritage and renew it.

Some minorities' offspring burn cars – most bring vitality

: Singer of a group that is "Black-blanc-beur" (Black-White-Arab)

"One monarch, one faith!" the Sun King declared. But France has never been monolithic. We show the importance of religious and ethnic populations over centuries and give a positive view of the diversity of France's population now.