The Eiffel Tower - The Symbol Of Paris
Author: Sebastian Sikkerneq Hoel

The Eiffel Tower is an iron tower built beside the river Seine
in Paris. Originally intended as a structure to commemorate the
French Revolution, nobody could have guessed that 100 years
later The Eiffel Tower would become the symbol of Paris itself.

The Eiffel Tower has its name after the engineer Alexandre
Gustave Eiffel. For two years, 1887-1889, three hundred steel
workers struggled to join together 18038 pieces of steel by
using 2,5 million steel bolts. When thinking about
safety-measurements in the 19th century it is remarkable that
only one worker died during the construction of the tower.

In all they used 7300 tons of steel to form the tower's three
distinct levels. Those levels currently house two restaurants
and a snackbar. Altitude 95 is one the first level, the Jules
Verne restaurant on the second level and the snackbar on the
third level. The Jules Verne Restaurant even has one star in the
Michelin guide.

The Eiffel Tower is 300 metres high, without the 21 metre
antenna which is mounted on the top, and in order to get to the
top visitors must climb 1665 steps. The number of steps has
varied over the years with different renovations. Luckily
visitors can use one of the many elevators in order to get to
the top.

By far the tallest structure in Paris, the tip may bend away
from the vertical by as much as 18cm (7in) due to expansion of
its 7,300 metric tons of iron because of heat from the sun.
Warming by the sun heats one side more than the other. That's
all the more remarkable since wind shear is usually the major
problem with tall structures. But, the engineering is so
well-thought out that the strongest winds cause no more than
five inches of deflection.

In the beginning The Eiffel Tower met a lot of resistance,
there were widespread petitions to have it torn down by some who
considered it ugly and intrusive. That might have succeeded if
it hadn't been in use as an antenna for the then-leading-edge
technology of telegraphy. In 1909 a permanent underground radio
center was built and since 1957 it's been used as a transmission
tower for both FM radio and television. The tower has even been
part of scientific research. In 1910, Wulf used it to make
measurements that resulted in the discovery of cosmic rays.

The Eiffel Tower was the world's tallest structure until 1930,
the record was then overtaken by The Chrysler Building in New
York.

A visit to Paris is not complete without a visit to The Eiffel
Tower, it is a must. From the top visitors can se 67 km into the
French landscape, it is truly a remarkable sight. If it is not
appealing to stand in the long line , which you must do in order
to enter the tower, it is very nice just to stand beside or
beneath the tower and enjoy it. It is also a good idea to take a
picnic in the nearby park.

To visit the tower, take the Metro - the Paris subway - to the
Trocadero station. Then, walk from the Palais de Chaillot to the
Seine. From there you can't miss it.


About The Author: This article is written by Sebastian
Sikkerneq Hoel which use to write travel articles for
http://www.airlines.no, both in norwegian and english.