Just on CNN.com. Wonder what started it.
ash
Top part of Eiffel Tower on fire, according to wire services.
by ashitaka 9 Replies latest social current
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Shakita
Also on http://www.msnbc.com/news/942513.asp?0cm=c20
Mrs. Shakita
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TresHappy
Sorry to hear that.
How many on this forum have been to the top of the Eiffel Tower? Beautiful sight, isn't it?
If you have, say "aye."
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Shakita
Not me, never been out of the United States. Kind of sad, huh?
More on the fire: http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/europe/07/22/eiffel.tower/index.html
Mrs. Shakita
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cruzanheart
Aye, but it took an Act of Big Tex to get me up there. I'm terrified of heights, but he talked fast and propelled me upward with the idea that this might be the only time in my life I'd get to do this so it was worth the extra effort. He was right, though I hugged the inside wall the whole time. He tried to lure me over to the edge to take photos but I just stuck my camera arm out as far as it would go, and snapped that way. Believe me, I like looking at the photos more than the memory of being up there! But I'm glad I did it. It was indeed an incredible view and I didn't fall down and go boom.
I love Paris!
Nina
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TresHappy
Yes Nina, the view is much better than the trip. We were warned about pickpockets on the elevator . Although I have been to Paris several times, I made it only once to the top of the tower. That was in 1980. My favorite thing in Paris I found on my last trip - Musee D'Orsay. An old train station they turned into an art museum! What a wonderful sight. I got the biggest kick out of seeing a famous painting - "Whistler's Mother." I had no idea it was in Paris, let alone the Musee D'Orsay. I went the year after they built the Pyramid at the Louvre. It was great going through all the new exhibits. Still the sight from looking from the Arc de Triomphe down the Champs-Elysee, that's the most enduring part of the city I adore. La Ville Lumiere!
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ashitaka
Damn, now i want to go to Paris....BTW, did you guys speak any French when you went there?
ash
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TresHappy
Ashitaka,
When I was in high school, I took 3 years of French and had 2 pen pals in France. One who lived in the suburbs of Paris, another along the Cote D'Azur in Cannes (French Riviera.) I saved my money throughout high school and visited Europe for a month in 1980. Then I made it back several more times (1981, 1985, 1987, 1989, 1990) before my free stays dried up. My friends let me stay with them when I was there, especially in Paris. I would take the train in to Paris everyday and hang out. My friend went with me a few times, I went alone sometimes, and also went in organized groups. The French I forgot quickly came back to me because my friend spoke English about as good as I spoke French. We both had headaches at the end of the day from all the speaking in different languages and translating in our heads. I still correspond with both of my friends today, however it's done via the Internet. They both have AOL instant messenger and we talk. When I can't translate something I want to say, I go to a free online translator service and translate it, copy and paste into the message and voila, instant french speaking girl that I am. And to think I used to have to wait two weeks for a letter to come from there!
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RAYZORBLADE
Good grief.
I remember a couple of years ago, when the Ostankino Tower in Moscow had a tragic fire atop the tower.
I just have to look westward from my place, and I can see Toronto's CN Tower (1,815ft/553m), which is still...the tallest free standing structure in the world. I've been up the tower several times, and would perish the thought of any tragedy befalling it.
If you get to Toronto, Canada, give it a go. The view up there, simply the best!!
Paris' Eifel Tower is old indeed, and has pretty much stood the test of time. I have not turned on the news as of yet, nor clicked on the links (will do that momentarily).
As for France, honestly, when I made a concerted effort to speak French, the locals appreciated it and would respond favourably. Sometimes responding in English, saying: "d'is is how you say it" - with a smile on their face.
If you can master: Please and Thank You, in your international travels, you will find your visit, just a little bit better.
Anyways, I'm going to click the news link. I hope the fire has been contained, and no one has been hurt.
The Eifel Tower is indeed, a symbol of Paris and France.
Addendum: The fire has been put out, no injuries.
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Gamaliel
aye, oui
They actually let you walk up most of the way rather than take the elevator. BTDT. (Been there, done that.) For my job I've been there (Paris) several times. (I'm in NYC, but it's a Paris-based company.)
Gamaliel