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Paris |
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The
Eiffel Tower - La Tour Eiffel
A symbol
of modern architecture
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In 1884, Jules Ferry,
chose the Champ-de-Mars to host the International Exhibition
of Paris, in March 31, 1889 (Exposition Universelle de 1889),
in commemoration of the centenary of the French Revolution. |
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It was
decided that a tower measuring 300 meters would be created for
the exposition and 700 projects were presented, among which,
Gustave Eiffel's. Eiffel's proposal was unanimously chosen, but
later, during the construction of the tower, it became a polemical
subject. The construction lasted 2 years, 2 months
and 5 days (from January, 23 1887 to March 1889). |
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It was
almost torn down in 1909, but was saved because of its antenna
- used for telegraphy at that time. The tower became part of
the International Time Service in in 1910. French radio (since
1918) and French television (since 1957) have also made use of
its stature. |
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The tower
has a total of 1665 steps. Visitors may climb the stairs or take
the elevators. The stairs go up to the second floor and three
elevators (north, west and east pillars) go up to the first and
second floors. To reach the top of the tower, visitors must take
another elevator from the second floor. |
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My ticket for admission
to all of the three floors of the tower. Prices vary depending
until which floor you want to climb up to. |
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In 1901,
the Brazilian inventor, Alberto Santos-Dummont made the first
successful flight in a given time (30 min), flying from Saint-Cloud
to the Eiffel Tower and return, thus winning the Deutsch Prize
and a prize from the Brazilian government. Later, he constructed
the 14-Bis, which was the first airplane in the world to take
off using its own engine. Dummont's flight aboard his plane was
witnessed by many people and he is considered the father of the
aviation, title which was claimed by the Wrights brothers who
said they had made secret flights shortly before Santos-Dummont. |
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The
Eiffel Tower measures 300.51 meters (986 feet), or 320.755 meters
(1052 feet) including the television antenna. The 1st level has
57 meters, the 2nd level, 115 meters, and the 3rd level, 276
meters. On the 3rd level there is a reconstruction of Gustave
Eiffel's office and wax figures of Eiffel and Thomas Edison. |
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The
Eiffel Tower at night and the fountains. Very beautiful.
Je t'aime
Paris ! À bientôt, j'éspère. |
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A
closer view of the Eiffel Tower. |
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The Eiffel
Tower is located between the Parc du Champs-de-Mars and the Place
du Trocadéro, which can be seen in front of the tower
in the picture on the right. The green area that can be seen
across from the tower is the Parc du Champs-de-Mars.
It is
in the Trocadéro that are located those water fountains
that can be seen in many pictures and postcards. Unfortunately,
they were down when I took this picture. You can see them in
the picture below, but not so clear for it was taken from a far
distance.
The inscription
J- 180 avant l'an 2000 in the Eiffel tower means that there were
180 days until the year 2000 when this picture was taken. |
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Here
is the Place du Trocadéro, seen from the first pavement
of the Tour Eiffel. On the bottom of the picture you can see
the Seine river.
In the
picture below is the Parc du Champs-de-Mars and the École
Militaire on its end, a remarkable example of the architecture
of the 18th century. |
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The Champ-de-Mars
was opened to the public in 1780. Since the end of the 18th century
it became a place for popular manifestations. On July, 14, 1790,
the first anniversary of the Bastille, it gathered 300.000 people.
In 1908,
Jean-Camille Formigé, architec of the Service des Promenades
et plantations de la Ville de Paris, initiated the works that
lasted 20 years and which transformed the Champ-de-Mars into
what it is today. The esplanade was transformed into gardens,
buildings were built on the north and south and avenues were
opened. |
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The
Trocadéro again, seen from the second pavement of the
tower. On top of the picture a small area of the Bois de Boulogne
can be seen. |
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A
beautiful view of Paris and the Arc de Triomphe seen from the
Eiffel Tower. |
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The Eiffel
Tower and the Place du Trocadéro fountains. |
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