The city of love, fine food, art and stunning scenery #4

Part Four: Eiffel Tower – I tried really hard to omit the iconic tower from my “Things to do in Paris” list as I was sure it must be the one common denominator on everyone’s blogs.

But the more I thought about the imposing 324 metre structure, the more I realised I simply had no choice BUT to include it with my favourites.

Anyone with a link to the wikipedia website can find out the history and facts of the tower – unless some cheeky cyber cad has changed the key details to make it smaller than a house or newer than Gordon Brown’s latest re-launch.

So I’ll veer away from the technicalities and focus on the range of emotions I experienced when I ascended the essence of Paris.

The first time I should have seen the tower was on the Metro.

My girlfriend told me to look out the window but I missed it – reminiscent of the Audrey Hepburn film The Girl Who Stole The Eiffel Tower where the dashing heroine always fails to see the landmark for some reason or other.

The actual first time I properly glimpsed the ET was walking onto the bank of the Seine when its peak was seemingly spiraling up through a group of trees.

In the 500 metre walk to the actual tower I must have taken around 100 different photos – so besotted was I that I had to get the best image of the most French of landscapes.

Once under the tower we took one look at the queues and decided not to wait around and come back another time to make the ascent on one of the lifts.

Then we spied a distinctly shorter queue under the southern leg – all because the majority of lazy tourists were unwilling (or unable) to climb the steps to one of the viewing platforms.

And so it was we set off on the thousand-step ascent – and I’d argue walking up is significantly more rewarding than hopping into the lift.

You sense the scale and workings of the tower in a much greater way.

And once you reach the platform the beer you guzzle down is all the more refreshing knowing you’ve burnt off its equivalent in calories just getting there.

The view from the tower has been chronicled in countless photos and videos – so I won’t bore you with the sights and sounds of what beheld us.

But I’d urge you to schedule two visits to the tower – one during the day and one at night – because it’s during the latter stages of the day that the wonderful colours and sounds of Paris come alive from anywhere within earshot.