Touring Paris - Places To Visit 

Touring Paris - The Louvre

Unquestionably the most famous name in the world of art museums, The Louvre largely deserves its renown. Enormous and filled with irreplaceable treasures from around the world, this premier series of exhibits offers something for everyone.

The building itself is something of an historical and art adventure. The construction of the original structures began as long ago as the 13th century, though the present museum has its origins in efforts of three hundred years later. The existing Château du Louvre, which forms a large portion of the floorspace, was begun in 1546.

The subject of sporadic expansion efforts for the next three hundred years, the only major alteration in recent times was the addition of a grotesquely inappropriate glass pyramid completed in 1989. The Crystal Pyramid forms the current entrance.

The change had one advantage in opening up the museum to large numbers of visitors more comfortably. Through the entrance and down an escalator the visitor enters a world of 6,000 years of every style and type of art known to man.

Within the museum walls are Egyptian sarcophagi, Persian and Greek artifacts, medieval and Renaissance paintings, 19th century classical and Romantic sculptures and a smattering of the latest forms. Some estimates run as high as 100,000 pieces, but in truth no one could know with certainty.

The museum itself is an eclectic collection of styles, the consequence of its many additions and changes over the centuries. Much too large to see in one day, the visitor is well-advised to pick a few favorite periods or countries and focus on them. Naturally, the best strategy is to opt for several visits but that may not be practical for most.

There are the pieces known even to those with little interest in art - the da Vinci's Mona Lisa, the marble Winged Victory (Nike) of Samothrace, the armless Venus de Milo. But there are works well-known to those with at least a passing acquaintance with painting - Delacroix's Liberty Guiding the People, Vermeer's Geographer or Lacemaker, Ingres' The Bather, David's Marat Mort.

Along with the more recognizable pieces there are literally thousands on display known only to experts or the most regular visitors. Most of the collection is in storage at any given time. Many of the walls are covered from floor to very high ceiling with paintings ranging from miniatures to 10m by 3m (33 feet by 10 ft) canvases.

And there are a lot of those walls. The floor space covers several thousand square meters and there are a dozen different major buildings including the Château and the Tulieres that have been joined by passageways over the centuries. The various parts are also on several different levels, many connected only by steps. Be prepared for an extensive walk.

Fortunately, there are benches scattered about and the steps in many places are lightly used, providing several places to rest. To take a breather and enjoy a sandwich before continuing, the exterior too provides several places to sit. Here you can enjoy the passing parade of people or the stationary Les Jardins Tulieres. (Jardins is French for garden)

Lines can be long for tickets. Best to buy a ticket in advance or purchase one of the many available multiple-tourist-site passes. The museum is easy to reach via the metro (subway). Exit at the Palais Royal or Louvre Rivoli stations.
 

Touring Paris - Places to Visit

Touring Paris - The Eiffel Tower

Originally intended as a structure to commemorate the French Revolution, who could've guessed that 100 years later The Eiffel Tower would become the symbol of Paris itself?

But, judging by the six million annual visitors and the millions of photographs, that's what it has become. To date the tower has received over 200 million visitors since its completion in 1889.

For two years, three hundred workers joined over 18,000 pieces of structural iron to form the tower's three distinct levels. Those levels currently house over 1,500 steps. The number has varied over the years with different renovations. But the visitor can be grateful not to have to climb the 300 meter (984 ft) tower, thanks to the many elevators. The uppermost portion supports a 24m (79ft) spire.

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. 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.

Every seven years the entire structure is re-painted (using 50 tons of paint) to prevent rusting. Visitors can vote on the next color to be used by means of a computer housed in the tower.

Among many remarkable statistics about the tower is its history as the world's tallest structure until being overtaken by the Chrysler Building in 1930. Quite a long reign considering 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. More than just decorative, the tower has been used as part of a communications system almost from the start. 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.

But in typical Gallic fashion the practical use exists side-by-side with the aesthetic. The tower holds two restaurants: Altitude 95 on the first level, and the Jules Verne on the second. The latter has earned one star in the Michelin Guide and is accessible via a private elevator.

Apart from appearing in millions of photographs and thousands of television commercials, it has been used more directly as an advertising vehicle. From 1925 to 1934 the tower supported billboards for the automaker Citroen.

But the tourist needs no commercial to motivate a visit. The view from the observation platform, especially at dusk, more than exceeds any expectations set by ads. All of Paris twinkles below as the city is illuminated by both the onset of electric lights and the fading sun.

To visit the tower, take the Metro - the Paris subway - to the Trocadero station. Then, walk from the Palais de Chaillot to the Seine.

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