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Overview
Throughout the Middle Ages Paris was concentrated around the island of 'La Cité', closed every night with chains crossing the Seine. Here the Notre-Dame cathedral was built, one of the early gothic monuments, in contrast to the Royal Chapel, which is tiny in comparison and more sophisticated in style. Visitors can walk across the waters to ‘Saint Louis’ island, which was called 'Cow island' ('Ile des Vaches') before it was built up by bankers in the 17th century. Parisians come to Ile Saint-Louis for Berthillion's ice-cream, with its 30 flavors. Relax on the banks of the river or in the Notre Dame gardens. In the same complex as the Saint Chapelle, once the residence of the kings of France (now the Administration and the Court of Justice), you can see the magistrates and lawyers in their robes. Continue the walk in many as directions as possible, maybe along the Seine to the Pont-Neuf , past the towers where Marie-Antoinette was imprisoned. This area is where 'The Hunchback' lived and the setting for the film 'an American in Paris'.
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