100 Posts on Letters from Paris!

This is my 100th blog post!

To celebrate, I’ll go back to the beginning and share some fun facts of the Eiffel Tower.

  • The Tower takes its name from its architect, Gustave Eiffel.
  • Construction of the Tower took 2 years.
  • It was built for the World Fair of 1889, celebrating the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution.
  • Originally 312m high, the Eiffel Tower was the highest building in the word l for 40 years.
  • The highest viewing platform, the upper level of the third floor, is at 279,11m, the highest observation platform in the European Union and the second-highest in Europe:
  • The antennas at the top of the tower are used for the transmission of radio and digital tv signals.

For the fireworks of the national holiday Bastille Day on July 14, the Eiffel tower is incorporated into the show.

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July 14 in Paris

July 14 is the French national holiday, known in the English-speaking world as Bastille Day. The Bastille was a fort meant to defend the Porte Saint Antoine on the east side of the Charles V city wall, and it was stormed and taken by the people on July 14, 1789 and later demolished.
The Storming of the Bastille is commemorated on July 14 since 1880.

In Paris, the celebrations of the 14-juillet, as it is called in French, start on the night before with the Bal des pompiers (the fire-fighters ball) held in the city’s various fire stations. In other French towns, it is either the Bal des pompiers, or the Bal Populaire (the people’s ball), often organized just outside the local town hall. Some towns have their fireworks on July 13, others on July 14.

In Paris, the day begins with the famous parade on the Champs Élysées that is traditionally opened with a fly-over by the Patrouille de France in the national colors bleu-blanc-rouge.

Then the president descends the avenue, accompanied by the Garde Républicaine,  and takes place on the platform installed on the place de la Concorde, where he watches the parade with the government, members of the national assembly and the senate, assorted dignitaries and guests.

The parade descends from the Arc de Triomphe to the Place de la Concorde. It is composed of military units on foot, on various motorized vehicles, on horseback, and in the air. The Foreign Legion marches in last place because their step is slowest.
The loudest applause from the spectators along the avenue is always for the firefighters who close the parade with all their different vehicles, for the Paris firefighters are part of the military. (They were founded by Napoléon Bonaparte after a fire broke out during a reception at the Austrian Embassy in 1810 during which around a hundred people died.)

During the day, the public has the occasion to meet the military, notably on the Esplanade des Invalides between the Dome des Invalides and the Seine river, where l’Armée de Terre (the army), l’Armée de l’air (the air force) and la Marine (the navy) are represented.

Show events include visiting tanks and helicopters, parachutists jumping from helicopters in the sky, and more.

The day concludes with a concert on the Champ de Mars that is transmitted live on television and the famous fireworks at the Eiffel Tower.

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