My first meal in Paris was a warm goat cheese salad, a ham and cheese crepe and a chocolate cake so rich I had to drink three glasses of water to wash away the sugary veneer in my mouth.

After dinner I walked along the ancient stone Quai on the Seine and soaked up the city.

On the Quai de la Rapee I came across three sunken concrete performance areas with large groups of people dancing in each. I wasn't sure what kind of dancing they were doing but it was elegant. Men were in the inner circle and women were in the outer, each woman taking the hand of the man behind her as the inner circle rotated. It was a kind of french square dancing and I could have been amused for hours but the beautiful figure of Notre Dame grabbed my attention.

I am not a religious man, but oftentimes in my travels I have moved to near tears at what man has built in pursuit of faith and Notre Dame is quite an achievement.

The first stone was laid in 1163 followed by more than 200 years of toil by armies of craftsmen and gothic architects.

The west facade, the front, is a masterpiece of French Gothic architecture with numerous gargoyles peering down at you ready to strike. The round rose window depicts the Virgin Mary and just below that there are 28 stone images of the kings of Judah. The spire soars to almost 300 feet.

I was reminded of the St. Mary's Cathedral-Basilica of the Assumption in Covington Kentucky which was based upon Notre Dame. Yes, I am aware of how that sounds equating these two things but the Basilica possesses the largest hand blown stained glass window in existence. It measures a whopping 24 feet by 67 feet and contains 117 distinctive figures and all of this is right below more than 50 gargoyles. (So there!)

Notre Dame is a work of art in a city that is a masterpiece itself. Paris is like being a virile young man in a room full of beautiful women, it's hard to know where to start and you can't help but to look at everything.

I traced my way down the lines to the Seine and saw the reflection of numerous lights oscillating in the water in countless concentric circles caused by the very gentle misty rain.

The bazillion candlepower spotlight atop the Eiffel Tower razored a warning to phantom ships and, as if to add further emphasis, exploded in a storm of flashbulb frenzy with thousands of lights firing at random from top to bottom. It was 11pm.

It's no wonder Paris has the nickname "city of light", a moniker that refers not to lighted structures but enlightended structures of thought. It has always been a magnet for artists, writers and dissidents and continues that tradition today leading the forefront of literary and artistic life.

It is truly a city that has it all. Tiny alleyways of Montmartre contrast with the vista of the Louvre. Along every street, patisseries, cafes and boulangeries compete to serve you food so delicious that the worst meal is still better than what you're normally used to.

There are numerous markets and pedestrian arcades as well as giant commercial centers like La Defense and Les Halles.

Paris has over 150 museums ranging from monsters like the Louvre and Musee D'Orsay to smaller ones like the Rodin and and the Jewish Museum.

And the music! French rock is famously horrific, but the city has a tremendous diversity especially in regards to West African and Arab music. Classical music concerts many times are free.

It is from walking the Seine that I got the immediate gratification of knowing exactly where I was. I remembered thinking how happy I was to be on my first night here knowing that there was much more food to eat and much more beauty to witness.

It's true that the first order of business in Paris is to eat. The second order is to simply be amazed.

Why you'll have to buy the book
-Port D'Clignancourt Market
-Tapestry art and it's history
-Consignment shops
-Montmartre