The Eiffel Tower was amazing. Of course, you know it is big before you see it, but you don't have any idea how massive it is until it towers above you, scraping the clouds. I couldn't stop snapping pictures of it, other than to try to dodge one of the dozens of folks peddling small replicas of the tower to the tune of 6 for 1 Euro. I made the mistake of trying to purchase one for my daughter who was desperate for one, and I almost had to punch the guy to get my change back (he kept wanting to give me more of them for the 5E bill I gave him).
With our pre-purchased tickets and specific time reservations, we sailed right past the lines and marched in. We decided to immediately take the elevator to go up to the second level.
The view from the second floor observatory was breathtaking! You could see everything in the city, with surprisingly good detail. It was a gorgeous evening, just perfect for viewing.
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| Trocadero |
Because there is only one elevator that goes all the way up to the very top of the tower, the lines can get long. Lucky for us (because of my skilled timing, planning, and researching), we had only a 10 minute wait, and then we sailed up through the sky. Our ears popped, but the view was stunning!
We stepped off to see that there's a champagne bar at the top. Alas, we don't drink. That didn't stop us from being in the spirit of the city though!
It was quite windy at the top, and a little later in the year, I'm sure it would be much chillier. Rebecca enjoyed catching the wind with her mouth (?) and proclaimed, "Whoa, cool!"
The view from the very top was spectacular, even though you couldn't see things in as great a detail. Although it was windy, I was pleasantly surprised that the Eiffel Tower doesn't sway the way the Empire State Building does. (In fact, a bit of trivia I learned was that even in the strongest storm, the needle only moves 2 point something centimeters). Even me, the one who went into hysterics when Ramy got too close to the edge of a big cliff, was not afraid!
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| Sacre Cour Basilica in Montmartre from Eiffel Tower |
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| Grandes Boulevards from La Etoile |
Needless to say, going up in the Eiffel Tower was a perfect way to kick off our trip to Paris. It was hard to decide whether the view FROM the Eiffel Tower was better or if the view OF the Eiffel Tower was more stunning. We descended back down to earth as the sun was setting and as the lights came on.
After a little souvenir excursion, we quickly made our way to the Trocadero to see the lights twinkling. We made it just in time! Rebecca still talks about the dancing lights at the "Eye-fuh Tower." One of the things I've enjoyed doing since we've been home is trying to time it so that I can see it again on one of the webcams!
Now, it's pretty hard to walk away from a sight like this, unless you know that you're going to be able to eat while seeing this. So that's what we did. We had our first Parisian dinner at a little cafe nearby. Rebecca was ready to EAT!
As good as the food was, and it was indeed delicious, the desserts were the best.
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