Skating on the Eiffel Tower
ECOVORE: http://www.theurbn.com/category/feature/ecovore-feature/
Last edition from Ecovore: Let’s Do Munch: Ann Arbor, Michigan
Eiffel Tower. By Robin Tierney
No, it’s not a dream. An ice rink has opened on the first level of the Eiffel Tower. So if you’re visiting Paris before the end of January, pack your skates and be part of la belle vue.
Rain clouds part as Paris illuminates dusk skies. By Robin Tierney
As the days grow shorter, the City of Light has more time to shine. Winter visits to Paris offer unexpected pleasures from designer holiday displays to free concerts outside some of the world’s most beautiful buildings. And while there’s new eye candy sweetening the cityscape, such as the diaphanous Voltaire Building on the Paris Diderot University campus, the historic structures eternally entice.
Amusing feats of fashion have become tradition at the InterContinental Paris Le Grand Hôtel. At the heart of Paris facing the Opéra Garnier, the Napoleon-era hotel opened 1862 and recently was restored to Second Empire splendor, from its 470 guestrooms to illustrated ceilings – with amusing scenes that include smoking and drinking cherubim. Also check out the gilded, mirrored, Greek sculpture-studded ballroom that hosts soirees and fashion shows.
Naughty cherubs on the cafe ceilings of the Paris InterContinental. By Robin Tierney
The lobby-level Café de la Paix offers rich treats and people-watching even on wet, chilly days thanks to its glass-encased sidewalk cafe. And don’t miss the winter garden curated by designers in the lobby.
As the sun sets and the clouds float by, softly hued lights around the city illuminate magnificent landmarks such as the Opéra house. Can’t catch a show? You can still view ethereal ballet costumes, collectibles and architecture from within the Opéra’s boutique.
Several times weekly, street performers turn the Opera steps into a free outdoor concert hall. During my visit, adults clustered and children danced as Les Plaies Mobiles played French standards and pop tunes such as Pink’s “Get The Party Started” and the White Stripes’s “Seven Nation Army” on tuba, trombone, marching drums and other instruments. “We’re medical students,” says Tigran, a member of the “fanfare” – French for raucous band. “The police let us play about an hour.”
Les Plaies Mobiles perform a free, impromptu concert. By Robin Tierney
Where to eat? For culinary genius with a conscience, Ecovore trusts the gourmands of Vegan Paris.
Worth taking: the behind-the-scenes Eiffel Tower tour, which takes you deep inside the remarkable structure and reveals its history, replete with technological innovations, tales of espionage and wartime secrets.
Climbing inside the Eiffel Tower. By Robin Tierney
And every night, you can watch the tower’s 20,000 flashbulbs glitter five minutes on the hour – proving Paris truly is the City of Lights.
Paris, the City of Light. By Robin Tierney
[...] edition from Ecovore: Skating on the Eiffel Tower Better to crack helmet than head. By Robin [...]
[...] are in what will one day become the eighth arrondissement of Paris, on the north bank of the river Seine, by the Elysian Fields, or as everyone knows them, [...]