Clouded in perfume and with a penchant for champagne and the good things in life, Paris is the grande dame of world cities.. The Age of Enlightenment heralded over two centuries which saw Paris at the intellectual centre of the world: the home of new literary and artistic movements and the cradle of the language of diplomacy—all set within the scintillating splendour of gilded domes, fussily manicured gardens and a deep-rooted joie de vivre. Holding on to its prized credentials of luxury and romance, the city has opened itself to the world and even to its peripheral suburbs. We have ventured to uncover what 21st century Paris has to offer—from ebullient bars à vins and glam boutiques in the first arrondisement to rustic home cooking in the twentieth.