Map of Paris metro system. The Métro opened on 19 July 1900, its first line being from Porte de Vincennes to Porte Maillot (not surprising it is now the line number 1). Fulgence Bienvenüe was the engineer in charge of construction, the architect Hector Guimard being responsible for the Art Nouveau entrances. The system has 199 km (124 miles) of track and 15 lines. There are 368 stations (not including RER stations), 87 of these being interchanges between lines. Every building is within 500 metres of a métro station. There are 3500 cars which transport roughly 6 million people per day. There are 15000 employees of the métro (1989 statistics).

Hotel Deville A swampy area of the Seine known as La Place de Greve, this site has held a lofty spot in the history of Paris since the fourteenth century. The site of public uprisings (faire la greve = to strike), political rallies, executions and innumerable festivals and celebrations. Originally, a meeting place of the Water Merchants, the Hotel De Ville or Town Hall, was built on the square in 1357.