I was in Paris for less than 24 hours. Not wanting to be too ambitious, I rattled off the top of my head all the tourist places I could think of, and the Arc de Triomphe was one of them.
Completed in 1836, the arch was initially ordered to be built by Napoleon, who wanted to honor the French Army and its victories.
It wasn't until I walked around that I found out that you could actually go to the top of the tower!
This was the price for two adults.
You can take an elevator to the top, but it was broken when I visited. The trick to climbing the stairs is to empty your mind and simply trudge on.
The views of Paris that you can see from the top are very much worth it, though. The arch in the background of this photo mirrors the Arc de Triomphe and is a symbol of La Défense, Paris' business district.
There is also of course the Eiffel Tower, which looms over everything else in Paris.
Zooming in on rooftop spaces that made me envious. I did the same thing at the
Coit Tower in San Francisco.
This one is practically a forest!
Les Invalides, a collection of buildings and museums devoted to France's military history. The golden-domed chapel of Saint-Louis-des-Invalides was built in 1679.
The Basilica of the Sacré Cœur, one of the icons of the Montmarte area.
The Louvre, which lets you know how massive it is.
There are four sculptures on the pillars. This one is Le Triomphe de 1810, which features Napoleon being crowned by the goddess of Victory.
The names of the military leaders of the French Revolution and Empire are engraved here.
The day before I visited, President Obama had visited along with Queen Elizabeth for the 70th French-American Commemoration D-Day Ceremony at Omaha Beach in Normandy.
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