Vacation in France- The Eiffel Tower

Many beautiful words described the Eiffel Tower during the centuries. Its very name comes from one who constructed it and made it the most important achievement of his career, Gustav Eiffel (1832-1923). The work on the foundations commenced in the winter of 1887 (January 26 ); imagine that back then there were no cranes and the workers had only spades to use for what was to become the highest building of the world, as it was in those days. The foundations are 15 meters underground where the feet of the tower are set and held within.

Iron was used for making this monument and as Gustav Eiffel was explaining this choice to the illuminated minds of the time that were worried about the weight of the tower, "it is not heavier than a house in Paris". The total weight of the tower is 10100 tones. After a series of fierce argumentative battles with the opponents of the project, the main argument for the its sustainability was the science development. It was scientists that gave important support to the building of this tower motivating their interests in the different experiments that could be run here from in a variety of fields like physics, astronomy, telecommunication, etc.

Inaugurated in 1889 in the 31th of March, this edifice in the embodiment of man’s ambition and thirst for knowledge. Its height initially was 312 meters but nowadays it measures 324 meters. The tower has a total of three platforms: the first, built at 57 m above ground, shelters different restaurants where you can enjoy food as you prefer – on the go or savoring an exquisite dinner on a large enough display place of 4,415 m2. Oh, don’t forget about the souvenirs! You are most likely to find something to suit your taste as around 50 merchants try their best to tempt you with their vivid souvenirs display.

The second inner platform is 115 m high can be reached by elevator or by foot; on this second level a 6-meter high clock indicates time in luminous numbers. The platform comprised by the four pillars of the tower is 1,430 m2 here, which is considerably smaller than the first one. However, as early as 1889 it was on this platform where "Le Figaro" set up a printing press, producing its daily paper. Today, the gourmet cuisine is present, offering unique moments within the "Jules Verne" restaurant.

The 3rd and highest inner platform found at the elevation of 276 m offers a breathtaking view over the entire city. The distance between the four pillars of the "iron lady" shrinks down to 250 m2 at this level. If you are not afraid of heights, this is an awesome place to admire the view in open air and take a fresh breath of French air from the heart of this country.

There are two ways to get to the top, by foot using the stairs or using the elevators. Just to have a better idea of how much you’d have to walk if you choose the stairs, you should know that the number of steps in the East pillar to the top is 1,665. It is quite an exercise in the attempt of losing some calories!

From the ground to the second floor there are five elevators: one in the East pillar, another in the West pillar and one more in the North pillar; the elevator in the South pillar is a private one for the "Jules Verne" restaurant; in addition to that one, this pillar hosts a goods elevator as well.

When you reached the second level, there are two sets of two duo-lifts that take visitors to the top. The lifts have a capacity of 650 to 920 persons per hour while the duo-lifts’ capacity is of 1140 persons/hour.

If the incredible view from the top of the tower tempts you, you should know that a ticket to this view will cost 12 Euros, and around half of this sum for children under 12. For practical reasons, payment is accepted by check, cash or credit card.

The "iron lady" as the tower has been called, has changed the color of its dresses so to speak; if the original paint was a reddish-brown(1889), followed by a new coat of ocher-yellow paint (1892), today you’ll find the iron lady dressed in a three shades of bronze paint. The three-tone variation of bronze has the lightest tone at the top of the tower and it was adopted in 1968 after quite a few color modifications.Entirely repainted every seven years, a dress for the "iron lady" costs around 3 million Euros, but she is worth every penny!

I invite you to visit Paris with its well-known Eiffel Tower; take a breath of France air from the very heart of it!