March 31, marked 126 years since the opening of one of the most emblematic symbols of the city of Paris, the Eiffel Tower, the tallest structure in Paris and the world’s most visited monument, with 7.1 million tourists every year.
The building of the iron tower began in January 1887 and, after two years of construction, was ready on March 31, 1889 for the staging of the World Exhibition in Paris which was due to start in May.
This great monument, located at the end of the Champ de Mars on the banks of the River Seine, is a symbol of France and its capital. Three hundred meters high, and extended later to 324 meters with an antenna, it was the tallest structure in the world for 41 years.
Its builder, Gustave Eiffel, encouraged the use of the Tower as an area to develop scientific experiments. It served as a base for a meteorological observation station and from there the first hertzian telephone connection to the Pantheon in Paris was established. Due to the lack of funds, the idea of establishing a wireless telegraph network there did not materialize.
First radio, and years later, television had the "Iron Lady" as an ally for their broadcasts via the antenna installed on the top, a fact that did not go unnoticed by the Nazis as well as the Allies during the German occupation of World War II.
Today, it is a must-see for tourists who come to Paris, a unique place from which to enjoy the view of the 'City of Lights'. In addition, last year its first floor was turned into a "vertigo experience" with the installation of a new glass floor offering spectacular views of the city with a 57-feet fall to the ground.
The famous Tower has also come to be first among the places in the world where most selfies are taken, followed by London’s Big Ben and the Empire State Building in the Big Apple, according to the tourism website Attraction Tix.
This year Google dedicated one of its famous images to the Tower on its anniversary. The 'doodle' honored the 250 workers who climbed the scaffolding with ropes tied around their waists to build a monument 300 feet high.