The Eiffel Tower was finished in 1889 for the Worlds fair to honor the 100 years of the French Revolution. It was not well received and was almost torn down for being an eye sore. But Gustavo Eiffel found a purpose for it as a radio tower which saved it and now it is a huge tourist site obviously! They repaint it every 7 years and it takes 8 tons of paint to finish it. Part of the purpose of using iron was to show its benefits as a new building material -cheap, strong, light. The Tower only weighs 7,000 tons which is fairly light for a structure of its size.
We mounted as it had just gotten dark and we an incredible view from the observation deck. We stopped at the second level, where it was frigid cold, and then waited in long lines to get all the way up to the summit where it was even colder! We spent an hour or so upstairs taking selfies and photos. While we were up there the sparkly lights came on for their hourly show. Even being up in it the view was pretty cool! I saw several students crying at the top - out of excitement at finally seeing the top of the Tower! It was an incredible moment!!
After we descended and while we were counting off we were just in time to see the light show for real from the bottom. The kids loved it and thought it was amazing.
It was a very cold walk back to the hotel but it was worth it! After we arrived, they surprised me with a gift etched in glass with one of our group photos as a thank you. It was such a thoughtful gift and one that I will treasure always! Love these kids!!!
Just amazing to see all the efforts (parents, staff, students) come to fruition to make long-lasting and life-long memories and experiences! As a parent, I cannot put accurately into words my emotions of just seeing the transformation and personal growth of our young man in one week! (My only gauge is the images from your blog and from Andrew-plus the short facetimes we have had this week. Can't wait to hear more in person.) As an educator, I realize the immediate impact this trip has had on the students just by witnessing and reading about the experience from your blog Tracey. Thank you for providing this opportunity to our High School students and for taking the time to share their experiences with us. There were moments I felt I was right there with our Andrew, witnessing the joy of each new day in Europe. Much appreciation and love to you Mme Waid!
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