The Eiffel Tower

---

We got up late this morning. Hardly surprizing after our long day yesterday. We thoroughly enjoyed the hotel breakfast and set out in the general direction of the Eiffel tower. We had a tour booked there at 13:00, so we were in no rush. We wandered around the area of Les Invalides, looking for a supermarket and enjoying the Parisienne streets. We found a store and got some snacks for the way. Then we headed towards the tower.

At around noon we came to the Champ de Mars, the old parade grounds leading up to the tower.

Ethan said it well. The tower is beautiful, ugly, and impressive all at once.

On the Champ de Mars there's a christmas market (lots of them around) with lots of stalls, mostly food. We worked our way through the crowds and went in search of our guide. Eventually, after searching around the tower's North pillar we discovered that we had to go through the security check and into the tower complex. We waited in line for the reservation holders, made it into the secure area under the tower and found our guide and joined the group near Eiffel's statue under the North pillar. The guide was dressed in pilot's overalls and sunglasses, and began the story of the tower with a story of his own.

But first he took us to the bunkers. We exited the tower area and gathered outside the bunkers, just south of the tower. There our guide told the story of how, back in 1932, he was a pilot. One day, when he was on leave, he was sitting under the tower and the most beautiful girl sat next to him. They talked all day, and agreed to meet again. Only after he left, he realised he didn't know her name or address. So he decided to go to the same place the following day at the same time, but she wasn't there. He was devastated, but went home.

Meanwhile, the girl also wanted to meet him again but didn't know how. So she talked sweetly to the radio operators at the tower and they allowed her to send a message over the air with a time to meet where they met before, in hopes that he would hear it.

Fortunately, he did. He arranged with one of his flier friends to drop him off, literally. He landed with his parachute right next to her, next to the North pillar of the tower. They lived happily ever after, at least for the next seven years. But we all know what happenned then. 1939, WWII. Our pilot was drafted to the war effort.

After the story we went into the bunker. Originally it was a communication center for the radio tower, but during the first and second world wars it was used by the French military (and the German after they took France in WWII).

During the first war, it was French radio operators there who caught on to secret messages sent by Mata Hari and who eventually let to her capture.

After the bunker we reentered the tower (security again) and went into the tower's West pillar, to the engine room. We had to wait in line again and go through airport security (X-ray bags, etc.) In the engine room, our 'pilot' went off to get a 'friend', and returned as the engineer (who used to be a lift operator until they automated the lifts). He told us about the machinery and how it works. Very impressive, especially considering most of the machinery there is the original stuff built with the tower in 1889!

The 'engineer' left and his friend the 'author' (another change of clothes and personas of our guide) met us and led us to the elevator. There was a problem with the elevator doors and we had to wait for 15-20 minutes for them to fix it. Annoying, no place to sit in the crowded area, but considering we got right into the tower and everyone else, who didn't order tickets or tours in advance and just stood in line for a couple hours, we were ok.

The elevator took us up to the second floor, over a hundred meters high. Did you know that the elevators have three stories? Two for passengers and the bottom one for the lift operator. That one remains empty now.

Our guide led us past the lines and up onto a restricted area, the roof of the Jules Verne restaurant on the second floor of the Eiffel tower. Same view as everyone else without the crowds.

Our guide led us back to the second floor, and left us there to enjoy the views.

Lines are the order of the day in Paris. The lines into the Eiffel tower's elevators (all four pillars) snake around under the tower. Then they get into the tower pillar and wait for an elevator. over 50 people crowd into each story of the elevator, which takes them to the first and second floors. Then there's the endless line for the top floor. We were willing to get tickets and send the kids up to the third floor, but the line just wasn't worth it.

We wandered around the second floor, and the first (which is also almost 60 meters high) before heading back down to the ground.

Back on terra firma we went back to the christmas market for something to eat (it was past three in the afternoon by then). Some good street food there! Among other things, the kids had some good hot chocolate, and Gilat and I had hot spiced wine. On such a cold day that was really good. Warms you right up!

Afterwards we strolled back across the Seine to the Trocadero gardens, took some pictures, got some souvenirs and headed back to the hotel to defrost.

After a rest and shower we went to forage for food. A short walk and several restaurants later we decided to try out a pizza-pasta place called Vapiano Marbeuf. A very modern, hi-techy place. Each diner gets a kind of credit-card. You order your pasta, pizza or salad from the appropriate counter and scan the card on a scanner. The cost of your order is added to the card and you pay on the way out. Simple. They should have something like that in Israel. Food was excellent too.

We eventually managed to move ourselves back to our room and to bed.

Looking forward to the Latin quarter tomorrow.

---