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Eiffel Tower Totally Beats Hype: Let’s Go!

Last updated on 2013.03.09

We've all seen the Eiffel Tower in photos and film. The grand industrial-engineering-art project is so familiar that we might be tempted to think seeing the Tower in person could be a let down.

We would be wrong. I spent three hours looking at and climbing on the Eiffel Tower. I watched the sun set on Paris from its second observation deck. I drank hot chocolate from a café 38 stories above the ground to warm my hands. (I also had a beignet au chocolat... Why not a double dose? It's Paris!)

And I saw the Eiffel Tower sparkle. Twice, the second time from Field of Mars, where at 11 p.m., hundreds of people from numerous countries were sitting on the grass night-picnicking and saying their latest native translation of Wow! That's cool!

Cory sees Eiffel Tower from bus
Good thing my bus buddy Chris woke me up... I almost missed it!
View of Paris from la Tour Montparnasse
View of Paris from la Tour Montparnasse
Eiffel Tower and Les Invalides
Eiffel Tower and Les Invalides
Sunset over La Defense, western Paris, viewed from Eiffel Tower, July 20, 2012
Sunset over La Defense, western Paris, viewed from Eiffel Tower, July 20, 2012
Lights sparkle on the Eiffel Tower
Lights sparkle on the Eiffel Tower

12 Comments

  1. grudznick 2012.07.20

    Mr. H, you look like you are having too much fun. I showed my granddaughter some of your pictures and she said you look very "steam punk" with those glasses and that tower. I'm not sure what that means, but she seem sincerely complimentary.

    Enjoy. Eat lots of French donuts and breads and fries. Do they have pizza there?

  2. Testor15 2012.07.20

    Basilica of Sacré-Cœur at 3pm mass with boys choir and me up in the dome. The closest I have ever been able to flight.

  3. Justin 2012.07.20

    I'm sorry, that sounds a little pedophile-ish.

    But I'm sure whatever you are describing was beautiful, I love that area.

  4. grudznick 2012.07.20

    I will never make it to France again. And the French are thankful for it. But Mr. H. is their type and he likes that stuff so I'm glad to celebrate his journeys. I just hope he doesn't come home to a thrift store that has drifted from the vision I was originally reading about. A thrift store with groceries, and paperback books, and a French motiff-e-twa (spelling is prolly wrong and I can't do all your goofy non-American letters because I have a Gateway computer made in America.)

    Do they have community run socialistic thrift stores or anything similar in Paris?

  5. Stan Gibilisco 2012.07.20

    All I want to know is: Can you find me a French literary agent who loves mathematics? Maybe I can become their next Descartes.

    Not sure if I'll ever get out that way ... if I do, though, my dad says I have to visit Florence, Italy ...

    :-)

  6. grudznick 2012.07.20

    I would like a picture of Mr. H with a French madman. A raving French madman.

  7. John Hess 2012.07.20

    Are you going to the catacombs? Seems like certain things like that are closed on Mondays.

  8. Nick Nemec 2012.07.21

    Stan you're getting Descartes before the horse.

  9. Brett Hoffman 2012.07.21

    Make sure to take the catacombs tour. That was my highlight.

  10. Michael Black 2012.07.21

    Get rid of all of the political posts and just do travel commentary!

  11. caheidelberger Post author | 2012.07.21

    Michael, that editorial change would require doing much more travel. That, in return, would require a lot more euros!

    Brett, I think I went up high a lot this time; next time, I'll head down more often. I think I'll really dig the catacombs.

  12. Michael Black 2012.07.22

    I'm sure we could come up with dollars to send you on travels far, far away...;D

Comments are closed.