The Arc de Triomphe is a monument honoring French soldiers, in particular those who served in the Napoleonic Wars. It is situated in the center of the Place Charles de Gaulle, once known as the Place de l'Etoile, at the western end of the Champs-Elysees. This monument, built in 1806, is 165 feet (over 50 meters) high and almost as wide as it is high. It is the second largest such arch; the largest one can be found in Pyongyang, North Korea. Its design was inspired by the Classic Roman Arch of Titus. The interior walls list over 500 French generals and the names of major battles of the Napoleonic wars, somehow omitting Waterloo. When Baron Haussmann redesigned Paris he redid the neighboring Place de l'Etoile, heightening the Arc's visual impact without solving those nasty traffic jams that just happen when a traffic circle serves twelve busy avenues.

Both France and Germany have held victory marches past the Arc de Triomphe. Beneath the Arc lies the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier of World War I with an eternal flame, the first in Western Europe since the end of the Fourth Century. Would you believe that a drunk was able to extinguish this flame? Can you guess how? You might climb the 284 steps all the way to the top, or you can take the elevator and walk 46 steps. And yes, there is a replica at the Paris Las Vegas resort.

The Theatre des Champs-Elysees is an Art Nouveau theatre several blocks away from the avenue of the same name. In 1913 it hosted the initial performance of Igor Stravinsky's Rite of Spring that degenerated from catcalls and fistfights into a full-scale riot. The Theatre is home to several orchestras and other cultural events and has managed to avoid riots for a long, long time (probably since 1913). Performances tend to be quite pricey, not surprising given the neighborhood.

The Grand Palais (Grand Palace) is a large glass Art Deco exhibition hall built for the Paris Exhibition of 1900. It recently reopened after being closed for twelve years after a glass panel fell. The Petit Palais (Little Palace) across the street is home to an art museum, the Musee des Beaux-Arts de la Ville de Paris.

The Hotel de Crillon is an exclusive luxury hotel at the foot of the Champs-Elysees in the north end of the Place de la Concorde. The hotel dates back to the mid-Eighteenth Century. Marie Antoinette was a frequent guest and took piano lessons there. This joint is so chic that its gourmet restaurant is decorated with seven different types of marble. Its top-floor Leonard Bernstein suite actually contains one of Lenny's pianos. And you won't have to demonstrate your piano skills to rent the suite. After World War I President Wilson and the American peace delegation stayed there, as did several other American presidents and the German high command during World War II. Space unfortunately precludes me from listing other fabulous, or at least famous, guests. And let's not forget the annual Debutante Ball attracting the likes of the great, great, great granddaughter of the writer, Leo Tolstoy, the niece of George Bush, and the granddaughter of an executive vice-premier of China.

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