For a Russian person, Paris may not reveal itself immediately. Our standardized cities, devoid of true aesthetics, seem to blind us. The very fact that ancient mansions and churches are being destroyed in Moscow and replaced with ‘new builds’ speaks for itself. In Paris, we often resemble people squinting from bright light, who have found themselves in the sun, where it is good and warm, but at the same time, they see neither the beauty around them nor its details. And the number of details in Paris that one can admire is incomparable to any city in the world.
Twenty-three centuries of history, of which sixteen centuries have been the capital of a state playing a leading or one of the leading roles in the History of Europe. Here were born: street names, house numbering, an urban planning principle based on perspectives, St. Petersburg architecture…
In the 17th century – this is the largest city in Europe (500 million inhabitants).
In the 18th century – a city striking with its often disgusting smells and filth that can be poured over your head.
In the 19th century – a city transforming into a majestic complex of wide streets, captivating perspectives, ancient quarters, Gothic cathedrals, palaces of the 16th-19th centuries, exquisite ‘Ottoman’ architecture (Georges Eugène Haussmann), lace-like balconies, high mansard roofs, trees planted and trimmed in ranks, the trendiest restaurants, cafes, cabarets, couturiers in Europe…
Within the same city, you will see different eras, different urban planning principles; you will trace how fashionable districts have moved over the last three centuries from east to west; you will feel how the imperial hand of Napoleon I turned Paris towards sophistication and breathtaking beauty; how Napoleon III developed and ‘disrupted’ Paris, emphasizing and enhancing this beauty, and how the republic, through its last post-war presidents, continues the work of the emperors…
Few theatrical productions can compare in impact and enjoyment to those that Paris offers.
