La Tour Eiffel

The Eiffel Tower (one of the most iconic structures in the world) and I have a little problem with each other. I have become disenchanted by the majestic quality which seems to captivate everyone else standing beneath it, and the Eiffel Tower has decided to loom over me, seemingly wherever I go.



It is not that I don't think the Tower is an incredbile feat of engineering, or a massive accomplishment for the era in which it was built, because it is. It is simply that now that I have been in Paris for a few months, I am no longer captivated by its wonder, nor do I think of it as a representation of Paris.



For me, Paris is more than a picture, a few triangular masses of iron on top of one another. Actually, the Eiffel Tower is a bit contradictory of the city itself. It was, when built, considered a "scar upon the landscape," and when you think about it, it does not blend with the rest of the city. It is an incongruous, grey, massive object in the middle of old stone architecture, delicate trees lining grand avenues, and the sparkling Seine. To me, in Paris, where everything exudes history and classic beauty, the Eiffel Tower stands out as a looming, ugly, thing.



Ok, I'm being a little harsh. The truth is that I didn't really think about the Eiffel Tower in this way until I realized one day, walking to the Metro, that it has been bugging me a little. So I started to think about it, and I began over-analyzing my sentiments towards La Tour Eiffel. I think that now that I have realized that Paris is about more than just an icon, I feel silly for having formerly felt a rush of glee when I saw the Eiffel Tower for the first time. Compared to everything else, the Tower is relatively new, built for a World Fair at the end of the 19th Century.



Although, that exhiliration I felt maybe represents something more...I didn't realize it at the time, but perhaps the Eiffel Tower is a physical manifestation of one's hopes to travel the world and see beauty in foreign cities. When one sees the Eiffel Tower on a postcard, travel brochure, or album cover, maybe it doesn't represent Paris specifically, but travel and adventure in general.



The past few days I've been trying to pinpoint my mixed emotions about this and understand exactly what it is I'm experiencing: am I becoming a pretentious Parisienne, and internally mocking the les touristes who flock in their buses to the Champ du Mars as I walk through, minding my own business? Or am I simply taking the structure for granted now, hardly glancing up at it as I walk to school? Or maybe, it means more to me than I realize, and is a more highly complicated symbol than I can even comprehend...



It's hard for me to figure this out. Last night, before I went out to meet some friends, I walked to the Champ du Mars right as the Eiffel Tower began to sparkle. It is quite a different sight at night from during the day. In the daytime, the metal is dull and harsh, contrasted against either the bright blue or gloomy gray skies. But at night, illuminated by millions of lights, and sparkling once an hour, the Tower comes alive. It glows, and seems to warm up the entire city.



I sat on a bench, and it started to drizzle, but I didn't mind...
I had fallen in love with La Tour Eiffel all over again.

Effects of the Rain: