The upcoming Bastille Day, July 14, celebrated as France's national day, is a good occasion to stroll along Paris Street in Sofia. And why not pay a short visit to France's capital itself, after which the street was named?

France's national day commemorates the 1789 storming of the Bastille prison, which triggered the French Revolution. The holiday is celebrated with serious abandon, especially in Paris, where the day ends with a massive fireworks display and throngs of people in the streets.

If you can't make it to Paris for this year's July 14 celebrations, try to go there some other time of the year.

Tourist brochures say Paris is at its best during the temperate spring months from March to May, with autumn coming in a close second. Winter can also be tempting for a visitor with various cultural events organised at that time. August is usually hot and sticky, and it's also when many Parisians take their annual vacations, so businesses are likely to be closed.

But let's go back to where it all started. Paris was founded towards the end of the third century BC on what is now the Ile de la Cite by a tribe of Celtic Gauls known as the Parisii. Centuries of conflict between the Gauls and Romans ended in 52 BC, when Julius Caesar's legions took control of the territory and the settlement became a Roman town. The Romans were finally removed in the fifth century by the arrival of the Franks. In 508, Frankish king Clovis I united Gaul as a kingdom and made Paris his capital, naming it after the original Parisii tribe.

The city prospered in the Middle Ages. In the 12th century, construction began on the cathedral of Notre Dame and work continued for nearly 200 years. The Sorbonne opened its doors in 1253, the beautiful Sainte Chapelle was consecrated in 1248 and the Louvre got its start as a riverside fortress around 1200.

The city's history has seen clashes between people of different races, nationalities and religions. French kings and emperors have drawn the fate of the country in Paris. By the 1920s and 1930s, the city had become a worldwide centre for the artistic avant-garde and had entrenched its reputation among freethinking intellectuals.

Today, it is again one of the top 10 dream destinations on the globe.

Located in northern-central France, Paris occupies an area of 105 square kilometres. The city centre - known as Intra-Muros, or within the walls - is bisected by the River Seine.

One of the symbols of Paris, the Eiffel Tower, is a landmark not to be missed when visiting the city. Built for the World Fair of 1889, it soars 320m high and held the record as the world's tallest structure until 1930.

The enormous building of the Louvre Museum is another "obligatory" stop for visitors. Only here can one see the finest examples of paintings, sculptures and antiques, such as the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo and Winged Victory.

Paris's Notre Dame Cathedral ranks as one of the greatest achievements of Gothic architecture. Begun in 1163 and completed around 1345, the massive interior of the cathedral accommodates over 6,000 worshippers.

This is just a minor sample of sites to visit while in Paris, but the city certainly offers much more. Here is what famous people have said about Paris.

"If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life it stays with you, for Paris is a moveable feast."
- Ernest Hemingway

"When good Americans die, they go to Paris."
- Oscar Wilde

"In Paris, everybody wants to be an actor; nobody is content to be a spectator."
- Jean Cocteau

"In Paris they simply stared when I spoke to them in French; I never did succeed in making those idiots understand their language."
- Mark Twain

"In Paris, one is always reminded of being a foreigner. If you park your car wrong, it is not the fact that it's on the sidewalk that matters, but the fact that you speak with an accent."
- Roman Polanski