Paris as a city is huge. Paris as an experience - that depends on which arrondissement you open it through. The 8th arrondissement (le 8e arrondissement) is, with little argument, the most visible and most representative part of the city: the Champs-Élysées, the Arc de Triomphe, the Place de la Concorde with its obelisk, the Élysée Palace (residence of the French president).

Everything that happens in French politics passes through these streets. And everything that gets bought expensively does too.

For lodging, locals point to Hotel Splendid Royal - 12 rooms, the Italian restaurant La Tosca with two Michelin stars. Expensive, but without overplayed pomp. The alternative for those not on a boutique-hotel budget: the area is full of classic Parisian hotels with balconies over the streets, and that's part of the experience.

For eating, the choice is serious. La Scène (two Michelin stars) for a dinner you'll remember. Le Griffonier for steak tartare - a classic French institution, without too much pretension. Le Mess for real French cuisine without pretensions. At the end of the day, Angelina Paris, a café with a history going back to 1903, famous for its dessert „Mont Blanc". It's a tea, not just a snack - it's a tradition from the time of Hemingway and Coco Chanel.

What to see? La Madeleine, which echoes inside like an ancient temple. The Tuileries Gardens - designed by André Le Nôtre for Catherine de Médicis. And, perhaps most importantly, the Orangerie Museum, which keeps Monet's „Water Lilies" in two oval halls built specifically for them. Those eight canvases are a different experience from the ones in Orsay - less touristy, more meditative.

For a Balkan visitor, the 8th arrondissement comes with one specific temptation - it has prices like Prague multiplied by three and an atmosphere that pushes you to spend more than you planned. That's the point of the area. Not to leave intact. But to leave with the feeling that you were once part of something more serious than what you live in every day.

Whether that's real or an illusion? Both. And that's exactly why Paris still works.