Eiffel Tower

Just the basics...

• Location: Champs de Mars in Paris, France
• Nicknames: La Dame de Fer which means The Iron Lady
• Height: 1063 feet (like an 81 story building)
• Weight: 10,000 tons; 7.3 tons of that is the metal
• Construction time: 1887-1889
• The Eiffel Tower is the most visited paid monument in the world.
• Why was it built?  1889 World Fair in Paris
• Gustave Eiffel engraved seventy-two names of French scientists, engineers, and other important people on the tower.
• The tower has three levels for visitors. It is possible to purchase tickets to go up to the first and second levels by stairs (it's over 300 steps to the first level). However, it's only possible to take the elevator to the third level.
• Restaurants: You can have lunch or dinner in the first level in Restaurant 58 and at the top if the Jules Verne
• Since New Year's Eve 1999, 20,000 flash bulbs give the tower a sparkly appearance every hour for several minutes after dark.
• Painting the Eiffel Tower: takes 25 men 15 months; painted every 7 years, using 60 tons of paint
• Eiffel Tower website