Activites sur la Tour Eiffel

Arc de Triomphe seen from the Eiffel Tower

As I mentioned before, the Eiffel Tower is the most recognized symbol of Paris which has attracted over 7 million visitors because everyday, the are hordes of tourists lining up to climb the tower for a memorable life experience. I can't stop daydreaming about visiting and climbing up the landmark. Here is what you need to know before reaching the tower. Ticketing prices will vary in low or high tourist seasons, the floors desired, and the type of visitors such as school groups, business travelers, or leisure travelers even disabled visitors. The price range is usually between 9-20 Euros, that is 12-30 Canadian Dollars. Transportation to the Eiffel Tower is primarily by the Metro, and the best station is "Bir-Hakeim" on the green 6 Line. There is another train service to the monument which is the "Champs de Mars - Tour Eiffel" station by the French Regional Express Network (RER). Other modes of transportation are five Parisian bus routes, biking, and automobile.



Jules Venre Restaurant

On every floor, there are activities, restaurants, and shops for tourists to delight. The top floor offers a human height measurement, champagne bar, panoramic maps, a model of how the tower's top originally appeared. There is a small wax museum of Gustave Eiffel's office, you will see Gustave meeting with the infamous inventor of the light bulb inventor Thomas Edison.The Second Floor offers an almost perfect place to take pictures of the City of Light. Here, there are lots of souvenir shops where you can purchase a personal piece of Paris whether a postcard or keychain. You can walk through the story window, where the construction story is on display. The "Jules Verne Restaurant" is a contemporary French dining experience that offers the finest in delicacies in an immaculate setting, lastly there is the Vision Well a glass floor with a view of the ground. The First floor offers there essence of the tower really is, the Immersion show is a short movie with a 360 view of watching Paris without going outdoors for a picture. There is another souvenir shop, cultural path exhibit, relaxation areas, a transparent glass floor, and a historical section of a spiral staircase. I have to admit that when I visit a tourist attraction, I look forward to spend my money on souvenirs that pleases or entertains me.

Spiral Staircase

The Eiffel Tower is one of the most popular spots in the city for romantic proposals and unfortunate suicide attempts. Now, I have learned that there is lots to do on this tower then just panoramic cityscape and taking pictures. I know that the tower is used as a radio and television antenna for mass media and communications across France. On specific holidays such as Bastille Day on July 14, the fireworks show illuminates the night sky as a glorious reminder of the French Revolution and the yearning for freedom. Every floor on the tower offers different perspectives of Paris based on its height. Towards the west, you can spot the Arc de Triomphe, the Champs-Elysees, and La Defense skyline. In the north, you can see the Moulin Rouge, and the Sacre Coeur cathedral. Onwards to the east, you can spot the Musee D' Louvre or Orsay, and the Notre Dame all aligned with the Seine River. Lastly, on the elevators you might see wax figures of elevator drivers just like in historical times.


Thomas Edison with Gustave Eiffel

Images Retrieved:

France: Information and Facts. (2008, January 1). Retrieved February 23, 2015, from http://www.europeword.com/france.html

Edwards, N. (n.d.). Paris restaurants. Retrieved February 6, 2015, from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destination/france/paris/33402/Paris-restaurants.html

Eiffel Stairs. (2008, November 14). Retrieved February 6, 2015, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Eiffel_Stairs.jpg

The Eiffel Tower during day and night – my incredible experience and travel tips. (2013, April 22). Retrieved February 23, 2015, from http://travel.prwave.ro/eiffel-tower-day-night-travel-tips/

Construction de la Tour Eiffel

Pedestal Foundations



After years of waiting approval for construction Gustave Eiffel was given the green light to commence the work on January 28, 1887. People around France, have submitted over 300 graphic proposals, but only 1 has been selected, I can remember this from a history channel documentary. A triangular iron-lattice design was approved by Maurice Koechlin, Emile Nougier, and Stephen Silvestre all architects and engineers. The construction site was on the Champ-de-Mars near the Seine River. This project will mark the pinnacle of Gustave's career after three decades on experimental research.



Lifts on the Eiffel Tower

The material used is iron and metal which will be manufactured in a Levallois-Perret factory, 18,000 iron plates and 2.5 million rivets will stabilize Eiffel's dream. The very first phase of construction was the laying the concrete foundations of pedestals which will hold the tower columns together. All four columns will touch or meet each other at the top, and the tower has been laid to represent the geographical points of a compass. I looked at the Eiffel Tower on a map, and the ticketing offices named after compass points like "Pier Sud/South". The tower will have three sections or floors which have its own purposes such as public restaurants or media antennas, it has also been proven strong against nature's elements such as wind. Only 300 men worked to build the Eiffel Tower and they faced their challenges, but the workers have been paid fairly. Working teams consisted of four men with the jobs of apprentice, holders, and riveters. During winter weather, the workers paused the riveting process as time for maintenance.

Installing Lights

I was so surprised at the meager number of workers is because of Gustave's concerns for workplace safety because of the use of riveting, hydraulic equipment, cranes, scaffoldings, and guard rails. One worker will lose his life building the Parisian structure. The overall exterior design is based on metal framework crossing lines and consists of 40 gallons of paint, in its lifetime the Eiffel Tower has been repainted 18 times. It is mandatory that the Eiffel Tower will have a new coat of paint every 7 years to avoid corrosion and rust. Its interesting to learn that the monument will be one of the first in the world to have inclined elevators and they will have two sections, because the elevator going to the third floor will be usually vertical. There are large supplies of ropes and chains to propel the elevators on the tracks. Completion of the tower in 1889 earned dignity from press members, French government officials considered to be a engineering marvel at the time, but faced scrutiny from Parisians.

The Eiffel Tower in construction, nearing completion of the Second Floor

Images Retrieved:

Eiffel Tower. (n.d.). Retrieved February 23, 2015, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eiffel_Tower

 

 



Construction of the Eiffel Tower. (n.d.). Retrieved February 23, 2015, from http://webodysseum.com/art/construction-of-the-eiffel-tower/

http://www.fastcodesign.com/1671154/travel-back-in-time-and-take-a-virtual-3-d-tour-of-paris-through-the-ages

 

 

 







Histoire de la Tour Eiffel

I know that the monument's heritage started its purpose of being the centerpiece of the 1889 World's Fair in Paris and to commemorate the centennial of the French Revolution. The man credited of designing the world's most dignified structure is Gustave Eiffel. The architect had founded a company based on metal framing for the stability in structures such as bridges or buildings, his strongest forte was on railway bridges. His designs were respected for their strength and weightlessness.  Gustave did not only create his famous tower, but he also contributed to the metal framing of the Statue of Liberty and the Panama Canal.



First Floor Promenade during the 1889 Exposition

I learned that from 1886 to 1887, Gustave had to wait for contractors and government officials to sign documents for project approval. Construction finally began on January 28, 1887 on the four base foundations which will hold the tower together. Building the metal and iron structure will last only for two years in time for the World's Fair, the tower is made of three sections. The inauguration was a mesmerizing event with the hoisting of the French Tri-Couleur and the firing of a 25 gun salute. On that same day, Gustave climbed the 1710 steps to the top and he will die on his monument on December 27, 1923. At the end of the exposition the tower will attract nearly 2 million visitors and at the cost of only 43 Canadian Cents, I made that as a conversion from 2.00 French Francs. In the years to follow, many people will make the Eiffel Tower as the centerpiece of their achievements, talents, and romance.

Nazi Germans in Paris (June 23, 1940)



The landmark will be used as a printing press for newspapers, celebrity visits for Thomas Edison or the Prince of Wales, a meteorological laboratory, stair racing championships, restaurants and bars, and the installation of lighting which will make the tower sparkle at night. In the infancy of mass communication, a first radio transmission was made from Arlington Virginia to Paris in 1915, this a was milestone because people can communicate with each other between nations. The tower will even be used as a setting for the world's first films and as a billboard for advertisements. Theodur Wulf was a Christian scientist that discovered radiation emulating from the tower's top, which explains the theory of cosmic rays, I personally read that fact from a book about Paris.  The tower was threatened to the wrecking ball three times in the new century. In the second World War, the French army closed the tower to the public by cutting all of the ropes that run the elevators. Adolf Hitler threatened to destroy the Parisian landmark if a certain request was not granted, however the French army hoisted a giant tri-couleur before they fed the Nazi Germans a taste in their own medicine. In years to come, the tower will be used for Bastille Day (June 14), and New Year's Eve celebrations.



 

An airship near the Eiffel Tower in October 1901


Images Retrieved:

First Floor Promenade, Eiffel Tower, Paris Exposition, 1889. (n.d.). Retrieved February 23, 2015, from http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2002723519

Adolf Hitler and his entourage visiting the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France, 23 Jun 1940. (n.d.). Retrieved February 23, 2015, from http://ww2db.com/image.php?image_id=11437

 

Airship, Early 20th Century. (n.d.). Retrieved February 23, 2015, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airship

 

    










Bienvenue A La Tour Eiffel et Biographie

Bienvenue A La Tour Eiffel et la Ville Lumiere. This blog will be dedicated to the structure that is synonymous with Paris, the Eiffel Tower! Also known as the "Iron Lady". The thought of the tower evokes images of romance, progress into the modern world, and human ingenuity. It is the world's most loved monument attracting over 7 million visitors annually, and its a very popular place to propose to a future soul mate. However, the Eiffel Tower did not always live up to its worth of dignity, due to the fact that I learned Parisians labelled it a "tragic street lamp" meaning it ruined the city's low lying skyline, they accused its supposed uselessness and its threatened to be demolished three times during the 20th Century, luckily Parisian attitudes have changed for the positive towards this monument.

As the blogger, I will provide a bio of myself because I am your "tour guide" of this Eiffel Tower blog. You can call me Kyle Ventura. I was born on St. Patrick's Day (Friday, March 17, 1995) in Makati City, it is within the National Capital Region of the Philippines (Manila). My parents and I immigrated to Canada in November 2000 and first lived in Ottawa. Afterwards, we lived in Montreal, Toronto, Mississauga, and recently as of October 2014 we have relocated to Milton. In my childhood and adolescence I always had a curiosity of the various cultures that make the earth so colourful, with that it started my abundant desires to explore the world, Paris is a city I would like to make a visit because tourists love the monuments, cafes, and romantic vibe.

After High School Graduation in 2013, I set my life compass towards an education and career in the Tourism industry. Notification of acceptance in Sheridan College's "Tourism and Travel" Program came to me, and I started my studies on September 5, 2014. The education will be used as self-compass to search a industry-related profession that I truly want, it is more than just the stereotypical "Flight Attendant" or "Travel Agent" or "Tour Guide". Also, having a career in the tourism industry is people-oriented and it would be wonderful helping customers provide their travel needs and wants. There will be certain facts that are already about my personal knowledge of the Eiffel Tower after reading books and watching documentaries. Some facts will be foreign to me because I just learned it.