Yet another cold, windy day so we went to the Tour Montparnasse looking for views and warmth.
The tower was inaugurated in 1973 on foundations that are 70 metres deep. There are 25 elevators reaching speeds of 6 metres per second. There are 7,200 windows and 5,000 employees. There are nearly one million tourists per year and at €13.50 per head equals €13.5 million income per year. Not a bad earner!
But before tackling the tower, we had a look at the extensive marché brocante (flea market) down below.
Nothing cheap here despite the fleas.
Silver.
Carpets, rugs and kilns with authenticity certificates. Some were absolutely gorgeous.
From the 56th floor, we looked down on the long line of stalls in the march brocante.
It was not great weather for playing "spot the landmark" but the large green mass of the Luxembourg Gardens is unmistakable.
And of course the Tour Eiffel with its associated green parklands called the Champs de Mars, with the modern towers of La Defense in the distance.
Underneath this complex is the huge Montparnasse railway station. It is one of the six large Paris railway termini and opened in 1840. It was completely rebuilt in 1969; It is used by inter-city TGV (very fast) trains to west and south-west France. It also services Metro and regional (RER) lines.
That is a day and night park with five tennis courts on the roof.
There is a very comfortable viewing lounge on the 56th floor and then you are able to access a 360° open air viewing deck on the 59th floor, via stairs. It was too cold to stay out there too long and the haze still persisted so the view was no clearer than it had been lower down.
So we retreated to check out the restaurant also on the 56th floor. It is said to be the best place to view the hourly light show at the Tour Eiffel. There are window tables as well as tables on raised platforms: guess which ones are more expensive and at €12.00 euros for two coffees, it won't be cheap.
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