A Man Walked Up the Eiffel Tower...

And said to his buddy, "I just finished a long climb."  His buddy asked, "What did you climb?"  To which the man replied "Eiffel."  The friend patted his pack and asked, "You fell?  I hope you are ok..."


This horrible pun is brought to you by "Watch the Speed Bump Driving School" and "Good Eggs Again and Again" Organic Farms.  Dedicated to Dr. Fahrner, a connoisseur of puns. 


Indeed, we did climb the Eiffel Tower. I stress the word climb because upon arrival at the base of the tower, we were informed that only one lift was operational; thus, we either waited several hours so that we might be uplifted to the very top, or walk up the first two levels and then catch the lift to the apex.  We debated, and 674 steps later (the equivalent of 43 flights of stairs) we prepared for our ascension.


Construction began on 28 January 1887 and was finally completed 31 March 1889.  Designed by Gustave Eiffel - designer of the internal structure of the Statue of Liberty - it was inaugurated during the Paris World Fair.  It stands 1063 feet tall, and for a time was the tallest building in the world, until it was eclipsed by the Chrysler Building in 1930.  Nicknamed the "Iron Lady," the Eiffel Tower was built using almost 9500 tons of wrought iron.  Over 2.5 million rivets were used in its construction...one might say the view is absolutely riveting...This old bird is an attractive destination: according to statistics, almost 7 million people visit her each year (75% of whom are foreigners) and approximately 50% have visited the tower on a previous occasion. 

Arc de Triomphe

The Arc de Triomphe - visible from the Tower - was designed to commemorate Napoleon's victory at Austerlitz in 1805 over the combined forces of the Russians and Austrians.  A demoralized Austrian soldier later told a compatriot that he had a plan should the forces ever again do battle with the French: "A grenade thrown into a kitchen in France would result in Linoleum Blownapart."  True story.

And your helpful tidbit for the day: 

If you jumped off a bridge in Paris, you'd be in Seine.

Thank you, I'm here all week.

View of Paris