I have been staring at the screen for the pats 10 minutes trying to decide what should be the title of this post  🙄

So, back to my backpacking trip last year, after I left from Andorra I went to Toulouse, but I basically slept there for two nights, I didn’t actually spent any time in the city.

So I’m not quite sure I should use the title Toulouse 🤷🏻‍♀️. But let’s stick to it for now… I’m not getting any answers from this monologue.

I left from Andorra La Vella by bus. Well, technically it was a mini-bus and there was only a few passengers which made the trip very comfy and I was able to enjoy the amazing view through the Pyrenees.

During my research on where to go, I wanted to stay in Toulouse for three reasons: it was the middle (ish) of the way between Andorra and Marseille, it was close enough to Carcassonne that I could go on day trip and…

The Cité de l’Espace 🤩 🚀

The Cité de l’espace is a scientific discovery centre focused on space things. It was opened in June 1997 and is located on the eastern outskirts of Toulouse. And, being the geek I am, I HAD TO GO THERE!

My schedule was a bit tight, tho. At Automattic we have some flexibility regarding our schedule (how flexible your schedule can be will depend on your position). So I usually work from 6 am to 2 pm, because that leaves me with the rest of the day to do whatever I need to do, from groceries when no one is at the supermarket to a walk in the neighbourhood when the sun is still out during the winter.

And this is particularly useful when I am travelling, because I don’t necessarily need to take vacation days to travel, I can do it while I’m working as well and I have most part of my day to enjoy the places I’m visiting.

So, I got to Toulouse on a Tuesday night, went straight to the Airbnb, woke up the next day, worked from the bedroom, which is what I usually do (I only work from Cafes if I really have to) and took the bus to the Cité de l’Espace.

The place is fairly big and it’s was created in a way you can visit all the areas without going too crazy, although it does not look that way when you see the map:

From there you can visit their Planetarium which much like the one in the Museum of Natural History in NY, has a 180º screen where they project images of the space. The thing you don’t get there is Neil Degrasse Tyson’s voice narrating the movie.

They also have a quiz, which is very fun (I got all answers right LOL) and you have a keypad on the arm of your chair which you can use to select the answer.

It’s not allowed to take pictures of the movie, so… no pictures… I hope you enjoy this almost distorted image of the keypad because that’s all you will get 🤪

There’s a scaled version of the Solar System where you can see all the planets (no, Pluto is not there, not a planet anymore, just GET OVER IT) on a scale of size and distance

And I just found out I only have a picture of Jupiter because it is the best planet but I got the whole tours on my stories on Instagram

They also have a full-scale models of the Ariane 5 rocket (55 metres), Mir, and Soyuz modules

The ideal time to spend there is around 5 hours and they close at 6pm, so keep that in mind when you are planning the visit. It is a really interesting experience for adults and kids. I wish I had more time to spend there but this was definitively worth trying.

The tickets (which you can buy here) for one day starts at ‎‎€16.00 for an adult and the park is open from 10am to 6pm.

I would continue this post talking about my next day, when I went to Carcassonne but I think it deserves a post on its own, so, maybe next week 😉