Paris is preparing for an invasion unlike any it has seen before. "We're having a picnic," said Julian Française, a government employee. "We have a better, cleaner, more exciting, and more dynamic city to show the world than we did in the '70s and '80s. 'Ya'll come and see us now,' as they'd say in Texas."
Hoping to put aside its economic woes of the 1990s, Paris is facing the 21st century with a bright face. According to polls, the French people, even the traditionally cynical Parisians, are becoming more optimistic. The city looks better than it has in years, with such monumental projects completed as the cleaning of the Louvre, Opéra, and Notre-Dame. Much of the riverfront has been restored, repaired, and spruced up in anticipation of the millennium. And always the City of Light, Paris will be even more dazzling in 2000, with greater illuminations than ever before.
Paris may not be the most happening city in Europe. London, at least in the opinion of Londoners, still retains that position. But Paris remains queen of the continent, with more museums than ever, greater nighttime diversions, better hotels (many of them also rejuvenated for the millennium), better and more varied shops, and the most talented stable of chefs in the world.
Whether you're heading here for the first or the 50th time, the discovery of the City of Light and the experience of making it your own is and always has been the most compelling reason to visit. Neighborhoods such as Montmartre and Montparnasse, St-Germain and the Marais, are waiting to be explored for the first time or to be rediscovered by a returning visitor. In some ways, they remain the same, as if etched in stone, but after a second look it's obvious that they have changed.
If you're a first-timer, everything in Paris, of course, is new. If you've been away for a while, expect changes: Taxi drivers may no longer correct your fractured French, but address you in English--and that's tantamount to a revolution. More Parisians have a rudimentary knowledge of English, and the country, at least at first glance, seems less hysterically xenophobic than in past years. Part of this derives from Parisians' interest in music, videos, and films from foreign countries, and part from France's growing awareness of its role within a united Europe.
Yet France has never been more concerned about the loss of its identity, as it continues to attract an increasing number of immigrants from its former colonies. Many have expressed concern that France will lose the battle to keep its language strong, distinct, and unadulterated by foreign slang or catchwords. But as the country enters the new millennium, foreign tourists spending much-needed cash are no longer perceived as foes or antagonists. Au contraire: The rancor of France's collective xenophobia has been increasingly redirected toward the many immigrants seeking better lives in Paris, where the infrastructure has nearly been stretched to its limits.
Though Paris is clearly a city in flux culturally and socially, it still lures travelers for the same reasons it always has. Grand indestructible sights such as the Tour Eiffel are still here, as is the spruced-up Champs-Elysées--and both are as crowded as ever. The beauty of Paris is still overwhelming, especially in the illumination of night. The City of Light, one of the premier tourist destinations in the world, always puts on a memorable show.
