KUN0009 4 GEN 0256 KUWAIT /KUNA-KKE0 TOR-FRANCE-CHAMPS ELYSEES The Champs Elysees.. the worlds most famous and beautiful avenue By Sulaiman Al-Rashed (with photos) PARIS, April 21 (KUNA) -- It is no wonder that Parisians view the unique Champs Elysees, the avenue extending for thousands of meters from the Place de Concorde overlooking the gardens of the Louvre Museum to the Arch of Triumph, as the most beautiful avenue in the world. For, not only is the avenue over 70 meters in breadth and witness a history of kings and emperors through to Nazi leader Adolph Hitler who invaded Paris before it was liberated by General Charles de Gaulle, it is also the meeting point of tourists from all over the world. US President Thomas Jefferson, at one point the ambassador of his country to France, lived in a building on the Champs Elysees that now holds the Paris branch of the National Bank of Kuwait, and the City of Light remains sought out by politicians, literary figures and artists today. Walking along the avenue, one hears the different languages of the world brought together day and night throughout the year, where one can enjoy the numerous cafes, restaurants, cinemas and theatres, as well as have access to banks, travel agencies and luxurious car showrooms. The Champs Elysees is also home to Virgin Megastore, the world-renown perfumery Guerlain and the largest essence and perfume shop in the French capital, Sephora. As for designer fashion names, many have chosen avenues and streets branching off the Champs Elysees. The avenue is often used for official and popular demonstrations such as the annual Bastille Day celebrating the fall of the notorious prison on July 14, 1892, as well as marathons and bike races, new year celebrations (over one million people attended in 2004) and World Cup celebrations (1.4 million came to celebrate Frances victory in 1998). The late President Francois Mitterand used to often walk from the calm and quiet gardens of the Elysees Palace to the Champs Elysees and mingle with the French and tourists, telling his aides that he "felt the warmness of the people, the pleasure of the walk and busy life." And with the start of 2005, Paris Municipality concluded roadworks it commenced two years ago to regulate parking, improve paving and maintain roads. Today, the Champs Elysees looks ever the more beautiful now that it holds everything tourists of all classes seek, including a range of hotels and modern parking facilities, fast food restaurants and those with gourmet menus, as well as high-quality brands such as Louis Vuitton, Hugo Boss, Lancel and Cartier. In order to provide the best possible service for their customers, restaurant and cafe owners employ waiters fluent in different languages, especially English, Arabic and Japanese. Close to the Marriott Hotel, a popular choice among leaders, princes and important figures, is the Monte Cristo Orient teahouse, which services the hubble-bubble amidst a five-star atmosphere. And in another street just off the Champs Elysees, walkers by smell the luxurious essences coming from the oriental perfume shop much loved by citizens of the Arabian Gulf, Arabia Perfumes. Maintenance works on the avenue were much needed, as over 300,000 people walk through it every day, a figure that jumps to half a million during weekends and a total of 500 million tourists per year. The city itself, however, is in need of further organization so as to keep up with new developments. The Champs Elysees first existed in 1616 when Queen Marie, who was of Italian origin, ordered the building of a wide road lined on both sides with trees for the use of both people and carriages. After trees were re-planted on the sides of the road in 1667 by an expert that saw to the royal Le Notre gardens, and was named the Champs Elysees in 1709. Throughout the 18th century, the avenue continued to be traversed by carriages during the day, but at night it would become a dark place that no one dared pass through as there were hardly any buildings nearby. Of these few buildings, only one built by a Portuguese marquis remains and it holds a staircase made of onyx, the only one of its kind in the world. The Champs Elysees became of greater national significance after Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte built lArc de Triomphe (Arch of Triumph) to celebrate his victories and commemorate his war generals - whose names are carved on the arch - and this became the doorway through which armies marched to and from wars. The monument of the unknown soldier, over 50 meters in height, was erected at the arch by authorities during the 20th century and world leaders that come to France on official visits often visit the monument to place a wreath of -- In 1828, the avenue became property of the citys municipality and quickly turned from a deserted road to a place beating with life, whereby the municipality paved the road, set up water fountains and later installed gas lamps. Thus, Parisians came to traverse the avenue day and night, watching performances of games once enjoyed by knights on horseback, and soon cafes, restaurants and hotels crowded the sides of the Champs Elysees. The Champs Elysees became the "heart of Paris" when in the years 1844, 1855, 1867 and 1900, international exhibitions were held at the large and small palaces located halfway down the avenue, and by 1970, there were over 3, 000 gas lamps lighting the sides of the roads like a chain of pearls in the night. For the first time, the famous Sax played his saxophone by the winter garden on the side of the avenue and Jazz soon became a favorite of the American people, including former President Bill Clinton. Yet another thing to marvel at is that the 20-kilometer-long and 70-meter-wide Champs Elysees extends from the Arch to the Place de Concorde, considered the world's largest square. At the entrance to roads branching off from the Concorde stands a huge statue, each standing for a major French city, and in the middle of the square stands the famous Obelisk, the gift of the Egyptian Khidaiwi Ismael to France which is covered in hieroglyphics. ( flowers on it -- The memorial of the guillotine revolutionaries that decapitated the last of Frances Kings, Louis XVI, before the French Revolution stands close to the Obelisk. The Champs Elysees turned into the countrys most popular locations after the French national celebrations were held there, and people still gather there whenever there is a major event, such as when General de Gaulle returned to Paris on August 26, 1944, after it was liberated. On November 12 of the same year hundreds of thousands walked in silence in lamentation of the passing away of their hero, de Gaulle, and some one million French rushed onto the Champs Elysees in 1988 to celebrate their countrys victory in the World Cup. Another thing that is interesting is that granite is used to pave the 50, 000 square meters avenue sidewalks, a stone especially chosen for its robustness, resistance to harsh weather conditions and the ability to withstand the millions of feet that step on it. The sidewalk, once a place for mobile merchants to display their goods, is now used by cafes along the Champs Elysees to place their outdoor seating, thus allowing people to enjoy the weather and observe all that goes on around them. The avenue itself is now actually made up of eight pathways, four in each direction, all of which are constantly busy. All of these developments and renovations have hiked real estate prices, where in less than one decade Paris has come to be home to the worlds second most expensive real estate after having been at 10th place in 1994. This, in turn, explains whey many residents and institutions have chosen to relocate, and while there were 17 movie theatres on the avenue in 1994, there are only seven now. Even the National French Tourism Center moved this year due to high office rental prices. But the avenue is still attractive to large international corporations that compete for space alongside the famous Lido cabaret and buildings constructed along traditional French architectural lines, as well as near some of the more modern building such as Elysee 26 that Kuwait sold its shares in one month ago. The most famous cafe on the Champs Elysees remains the Fouches, where leading political figures of the past and present sit to contemplate the beauty of the avenue, and passers-by cannot resist looking inside in hopes of spotting an important figure. (end) sr.ema