I was just reading a good article about A visit to the Eiffel Tower at the Retronine travel website. I have to say it brought back memories.
I was fortunate enough to visit Paris and the Eiffel Tower back in March of 1998. I remember catching a glimpse of the tower as I walked from the Gard du Nord train station to my hotel. It was an exciting moment. As I was buggered from all the traveling that day, having just flown in from Beijing, I crashed in my hotel room around 7pm, but not before sampling McDonalds French style.
Due to the time difference between Paris and Beijing I was wide awake at 4.00am the next day. As my time in Paris was limited to two nights I decided that I would have a shower and then hit the streets of Paris. At 5.30am I found myself strolling past Notre Dame and then along the River Seine. Having grown up in Australia’s capital city, Canberra, it was a whole new world for me.
After a bit more walking I decided it would be great if I could watch the sunrise at the Eiffel Tower. As I did not know how long it would take to walk from near Notre Dame to the tower I decided I would test the Paris Metro. I easily found my way to the nearest station which was St Michel-Notre Dame. I remember using a ticket vending machine to purchase my ticket. A short time later I was on my way.
The metro at this time of the morning was quite empty. Before I knew it I was exiting the station at Champ de Mars. It was an amazing sight when the Eiffel Tower came into full view. I walked down to the tower and found that there was a few hours to a wait until the doors opened for visitors. Around 7.30 the sun was starting to hit the tower making for some interesting photos. After looking at the Eiffel Tower from all angles I decided to do a bit more sightseeing around Paris.
After studying the Paris map I decided to walk over to the Champs Elysées with the Arc de Triomphe the next prized tourist destination. After a fairly easy walk there I was walking along the famed Champs Elysées with the Arc de Triomphe straight ahead. After seeing this so many times on television and in many movies it was like a dream to see this world famous landmark.
I was now feeling hungry as I had not eaten all morning. Not far from the Arc de Triomphe I saw another famous landmark. This time it was the golden arches or McDonald’s. I headed there for a quick bite to eat. Having studied French at school I should have braved an attempt to order food in a more traditional setting, but you can’t beat convenience.
After a few more photos I headed back over to the Eiffel Tower. It was getting closer to opening time so I queued up to purchase my ticket. The gates were open and I was on my way. Being the fitness fanatic I was back then I decided to take the challenge of a stair climb. The air was quite fresh as I made my way up this world famous landmark.
When I finally reached the viewing platform I was rewarded with a fantastic view of Paris. The skies were clear and I could see for miles. I once again clicked away with my camera and enjoyed the magnificent Paris scenery.
After several hours at the tower I made my way down and headed back to the subway. I was now on my way to the Palace of Versailles . More on that another day.
The only regret I had following my visit to the Eiffel Tower was that I was there all alone. I will one day have to return to Paris with my wife to enjoy one of the most romantic cities in the world.
