Pont des Arts

NileGuide Expert tip:

Lovers, remember to bring your padlock!

Description:

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  More correctly called a passerelle or footbridge, the Pont des Arts is now a magnet for romantic types visiting Paris, who come here to declare their love by fixing padlocks to its metal side-grilles and throwing away the key. In doing so they are joining what is apparently a worldwide craze. The Paris city government is not so enamoured of this habit and periodically removes them. Before all this, the bridge had a history going back to the early 19th century when Napoleon first wanted a metal bridge crossing the Seine. It has been rebuilt several times, mainly because barges had a habit of bumping into its many arches. The seven-arched, 11 metre-wide bridge you see today joining Quai du Louvre and Place de l'Institut is a comparatively recent construction which opened in 1985.
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