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I Am A Polar Bear

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Tag: France

Paris: taking the Batobus to the Eiffel Tower | iamapolarbear.com

Paris: taking the Batobus to the Eiffel Tower

March 9, 2020

You know I love a boat ride and on this weekend, the Batobus did just the job. In Paris, the big name in tourist boats is Bateaux Mouches but they depart from Pont de l’Alma and that RER station was closed that particular weekend, to keep the gilets-jaunes from rioting in tourist areas. I rode … More Paris: taking the Batobus to the Eiffel Tower

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Sainte-Chapelle has a rock-hard floor | iamapolarbear.com

Sainte-Chapelle has a rock-hard floor

March 5, 2020

How have I never been to Sainte-Chapelle? For various reasons (language student, living on the south coast etc), I’ve been to Paris quite a few times. In fact, to be brutally honest, I’ve been too many times. Many an August day I’ve spent there, breaking up a three day drive home from wherever we’d been … More Sainte-Chapelle has a rock-hard floor

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The romance of the Eurostar | iamapolarbear.com

The romance of the Eurostar

March 2, 2020

In blog-time, it’s been months since I went to Paris. That’s because there’s been so much other stuff I needed to post first. In real life, I haven’t actually left London yet. I’m sitting on the Eurostar at St Pancras and there’s still seven minutes until we depart. I’ve never been a mad lover of … More The romance of the Eurostar

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My first school trip abroad title pic

My first school trip abroad

November 19, 2018

I went on my first school trip abroad in 1998. We live on the south coast of England – and when I say “on the south coast”, I literally mean that half of us lived closer to the ferry than to the school and when we got to France, it was the same thing with … More My first school trip abroad

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On top of the Arc de Triomphe | iamapolarbear.com

On top of the Arc de Triomphe

February 22, 2018

Last month I went to Paris! I’ve already covered the Eiffel Tower and today I’m going up the Arc de Triomphe. I first went up there when I was fourteen. I have photos and in case there’s any doubt, the photos are in an album with captions like “roofs from Arc”. But I don’t remember … More On top of the Arc de Triomphe

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I went up the Eiffel Tower... in the dark! | iamapolarbear.com

I went up the Eiffel Tower… in the dark!

February 8, 2018

Earlier today I was writing a blog about why I didn’t enjoy my last trip to Iceland and lamenting all the exciting things I could have been doing and blogging about… and realised I haven’t actually blogged about my recent trip to Paris. It was a long weekend – first thing Friday to Sunday evening … More I went up the Eiffel Tower… in the dark!

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How I learned to love Paris | iamapolarbear.com

How I learned to love Paris

February 5, 2018

I didn’t mean to go to Paris the other day but work colleagues were trying to plan travel to a supplier presentation in north-central France the week before. Paris being the only international hub within three hours, calls of “there’s a flight for this much but it’s at that time” and “the train goes at … More How I learned to love Paris

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Pierrefonds is a great castle | iamapolarbear.com

Pierrefonds is a great castle

June 24, 2017

While I was in France last month, we went into Paris and to Disneyland but we spent most of the time either in the pool or reading in the caravan. That particularly part of north east France is… well, there’s nothing there. It’s flat and empty and the sort of place you drive through to … More Pierrefonds is a great castle

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I don't really like Paris | iamapolarbear.com

I don’t really like Paris

June 6, 2017

This is a really difficult post to write and I’ve tried about ten times now. At the end of May, I went off in a caravan with my sister for a week. Being sixty-five miles north-east of Paris, we had to pop into Paris for a day. And while I need to write a post … More I don’t really like Paris

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Eurocamping as an adult | iamapolarbear.com

Eurocamping as an adult

May 27, 2017

When I was a kid and a teenager, I spent all of my summers on holiday with Keycamp – camping for people who don’t like camping, really. You arrive on a campsite to find your tent or caravan all ready for you to move in, fully equipped with plates and wine glasses and pillows and … More Eurocamping as an adult

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Who am I?
I'm Julie, a travel, adventure and wellness blogger. I love Iceland, I love jumping into hot water and I do love a bit of snow.

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I didn’t have the library on my to-do list for Birmingham but it turns out it has a great terrace for views over the square below, the research/academic library is pretty spectacular and while the normal-person fiction library downstairs is nothing very interesting to look at, it has comfortable seats in the dry and the warm and has wifi. #birmingham #libraries While my purpose in Birmingham was Rock Choir Live and my second purpose was the famous Frankfurt Christmas Market, I also had plenty of time to get to know Birmingham a bit. A particular highlight was the work of local boy Edward Burnes-Jones and William Morris in the spectacular windows of the cathedral, the Birmingham Bifröst which helped me find my way home in the evenings and a glimpse of one of the “more than Venice” canals that you don’t see in the area between New Street Station and the cathedral. #birmingham In yet another “you should be doing more with your weekend”, I spent the weekend in Birmingham two weeks ago. The main purpose was to see Rock Choir Live’s big Christmas party (featuring special guests Emili Sandé, Sam Ryder & Russell Watson, plus the legend Pat Sharp’s DJ set to get things started). The journey home from Spa was slowed down by engineering work, requiring a rail replacement bus to Pepinster where I had to wait for half an hour, a local train to Liège, long distance train ultimately to Ostende but to Brussels Midi for me, Eurostar to London and finally a South Western Railways train overdue some important maintenance back to Southampton. When in Belgium, eat waffles! Just in case there was any doubt about mineral waters in Spa… Thermes de Spa is lovely inside - although it’s much smaller, I think I prefer it to Therme Bucureşti - but the outside leaves a bit to be desired. The back is lovely, what with that huge glass wall overlooking the town. It’s just a shame about the barbed wire that keeps walkers out of the water. I know I’ve been to other pools with views and they haven’t had to resort to barbed wire. On the other hand, the front has something of a red brick 60s comprehensive about it rather than the welcoming facade of somewhere that’s about to transport you to a world of relaxation. Honestly, the difference between the outside and inside is astounding. Do go (when the funicular is running) but maybe don’t linger for selfies outside. #thermesdespa #belgium The spa at Spa is perched on top of a hill, accessed by foot via a funicular railway from the town centre, a 2-minute ride up 84m of ascent. Except when I was there, the funicular was broken and I started my lovely relaxing spa day with a very non-relaxing 1.3km hike up those 84m through the woods, which were unlit and very uneven under foot, although I only really realised that on the way back down. Because back in the summer I thought I wasn’t doing enough with my weekends, I thought I’d do a little train adventure to Spa in Belgium to try out the spa that named (or at least shares its name) with all spas. However, I built in so much time for late trains that it took about fourteen hours to get to Spa from Southampton Airport via delightfully Gothic St Pancras, genuinely chocolate-scented Brussels-Midi, a double-decker packed in with Cub Scouts to Verviers before finally arriving at Spa at 8.30pm. It was an adventure but as I realised by Sunday evening, it was the wrong proportion of travel to time in destination.

About Julie

I’m a blogger, adventurer, lover of hot water, amateur paddler and polar bear who wilts in hot weather.

Time (by day, I’m a researcher) and funds keep me within Europe and I make regular trips up to the north, especially to Iceland. I like the occasional adventure across Europe by train and I’m starting to make use of my weekends for 48-hour adventures.

This isn’t my only creative outlet – I’ve written two travelogues with a third and fourth being (not to much) written simultaneously right now.

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