text: > describe your surroundings
  The hill on this side of the river is a wide lawn with only a few trees, seemingly designed for the purpose of offering a clear view of the tower. Down the hill to the west, the streetlamps are already turned on over the bridge, like runway lights marking the path up to: the tower.
  
  A couple of kids are sitting on a blanket nearby, but all their attention is focused on each other.
  
  > examine the river
  It winds into town from up north somewhere, and it loiters around here for a while, and then it heads south toward destinations unknown. Probably somewhere warmer.
  
  > look at the hill
  Which do you mean, the west hill or the east hill?
  
  > look at the west hill
  The hill on the far side of the river is covered in trees, and they all look the same. Not especially interesting.
  
  > examine the east hill
  Somebody takes good care of this lawn. Some individual or group of individuals gets paid to make this a nice place for strangers to sit around and watch the sunset.
  
  There's one bright orange ginkgo tree out in the middle of the grass; it stinks, but it's pretty.
  
  > look at the ginkgo tree
  People would probably sit underneath it and have picnics all the time, if it didn't smell the way that it does. From a distance, though: very nice.
  
  > look at the tower
  It was built in the twenties by a man who had studied the Gothic architecture of France in his off time during the first World War. Then various other people built various other, uglier buildings around it, like it needed to be protected from something.
  
  From here, though, it seems to stand like a crown on the horizon, graceful and severe, all of its gables and arches very distinct against the sky. Is this the most beautiful thing in this city? Probably, yes.
  
  > examine the blanket
  The age of that blanket is in all likelihood greater than the sum of the ages of its occupants.
  
  > talk to the kids
  You mutter a hello, and the two kids look up to you with apprehensive smiles.
  
  > ask the kids about the tower
  They look across the river. "Huh," says the girl. "I never thought about it."
  
  "I always thought it was a church," offers the boy.
  
  It is not a church.
  
  > ask the kids about themselves
  The boy takes the lead. "Uh, we're having a really nice afternoon. Thanks for asking."
  
  > Kiss kids
  That's the kind of unabashed emotional openness that gets people arrested.
  
  > show the photocopy to the boy
  The two of them take a look at the photocopy.
  
  "I have no idea what that is," says the girl.
  
  To which the boy adds: "Yeah."
  
  > stare at the sun
  The setting sun is "directly" behind the tower (actually, it is separated from the tower by ninety-three million miles of empty space).
  
  > go west
  It's getting harder to see the tower, but it's still due west from here.
  
  The river looks a little choppy on account of the wind, and nobody's standing around to admire the view, but there are a few birds swooping around to make the scene tolerably pretty.
  
  Some guy is crossing from the other direction. Just don't make eye contact.
  
  > examine guy
  He's only a guy with a beard and a backpack, the type of guy you see all over the place. He might even look a little familiar.
  
  You just looked him in the eye by accident, and now you have to nod politely to show him you're not a creep.
  
  He keeps walking, and disappears behind you.
  
  > examine the river
  In a couple months, it'll be a wasteland of jagged ice floes grinding into each other; tonight it's just a run-of-the-mill river.
  
  There used to be a trio of ferocious geese that would hang out around here, but something must have happened.
  
  > Go west
  This side of the river is somewhat quieter, as there aren't as many people running around.
  
  But now the hill and the trees and everything have made it impossible to see the tower at all. You're too close. It's still up the hill to the west, though. You know that much.
  
  Well, great, somebody is locking up her bike on the rack. What's she doing here?
  
  > look at the woman
  Actually, it looks like she was in fact unlocking her bike, and now she's cycling off across the bridge.
  
  Maybe you'll have the place to yourself after all.
  
  > examine the trees
  The hill is covered in trees. If you knew more about trees, you might get more out of staring intently at these trees the way you are. As it stands, you have no reason to continue staring at the trees.
  
  > listen
  The low rumble of society is all around you.
  
  > go west
  All right, this is it. The tower is just ahead.
  
  Well, just ahead is the newer building that surrounds the tower on all sides, too high for you to see the actual tower from down here. But you walked straight west from across the river, so it stands to reason that you could reach the tower by heading through the door to the west.
  
  A sidewalk running around the building leads northwest and southwest.
  
  The placard over the door says "ENTRANCE 19".
  
  > look through the window
  The lights are still on inside, and you can just make out a photograph hung on the opposing wall. It may actually be a picture of the tower.
  
  > look at the photograph
  In the photograph, the tower stands alone atop a hill. It must have been taken before the construction of the building that you're peering into.
  
  > Go northwest
  There's another door here at the north end of the building, facing an empty parking lot. Not much of a view.
  
  The sidewalk turns from southeast to southwest, and it breaks off here toward a stairway that leads down to a basement exit or something.
  
  > look at the lot
  It's just a big black rectangle, but if you ran over to the other end you might be able to get a look at the tower.
  
  > go north
  There are no cars here; everyone must be home for the night. A low chain fence does a lousy job of separating the pavement from the slope below.
  
  But when you turn back towards the south, you do get a very nice view of the tower.
  
  > look at the tower
  You haven't had a chance to see the tower from this angle before tonight, and it merits some close attention. The north face looks very similar to the east face, but there are some details that either differ between the two sides or aren't visible from way across the river. Those rosettes, for example; you've never seen anything like them before.
  
  > look at the rosettes
  Well, you assume they're rosettes. They're probably rosettes.
  
  > examine the chain
  It's just a plain old chain, slung over fenceposts five or so feet apart.
  
  > examine the slope
  The hill descends into darkness.