The heart of Paris beats in Montmartre. It remains one of the last preserved districts of early 20th-century Paris. Its cobbled streets and identically restored staircases still climb the hill. It was the district of the penniless artists and one could meet Toulouse-Lautrec, Van Gogh, Matisse or Picasso, remaking the world in front of an absinthe. Many buildings and houses from the 19th century are still standing and restaurants flourish in the alleys as in the Belle Epoque.