New Place

Lazy Saturday morning in Bures: it's raining, I'm (finally) getting some laundry done in the hotel laundry room (€7 for 1 load means I don't want to do this too often), making a grocery list for this afternoon, and finally have a moment to upload some photos of the new place. We don't move in for two more weeks but I can't resist sharing the "before" photo of the kitchen, which is by far the worst room in the apartment.

Those of you who know us well know how much we like to cook. We will definitely need to perform some kitchen updates to make that possible. For starters, we need a fridge, stove, and oven. Oh, and a countertop. What you see in the photo is what you get: a double sink (sweet!) and some cabinets. On the plus side, this means that we get to customize our kitchen a little bit. There are several large superstores here that sell relatively cheap appliances (goodbye, stainless; hellooooo, cheap white fridge!) with free installation. There is also a French version of craigslist (called "leboncoin"), but given the heft of most major appliances and the lack of vehicle, it just makes more sense to get these items new. Plus, I really don't want to install large appliances on a power grid that I don't understand.

The rest of the apartment is considerably better. Below are the living room and bedrooms:

One peculiarity is that windows in France don't tend to have screens. On the first floor with both two-legged and four-legged children, I don't see that working too well during the warm weather months. Fortunately, we have a good 6 months before we need to worry about that.

The apartment also has a toilet room (typically separate from the bathtub/shower and sink in French apartments) and a bathroom (tub, sink, and washer/dryer hookups). Both of these rooms are tiled floor-to-ceiling in kitschy pink tile. It's the type of thing that you just have to embrace. Decorating ideas are welcome - and, on the bright side, it will be easy to keep clean.

Unlike many apartments that open right up onto the sidewalk, this apartment also has a nice, grassy courtyard, is 2 minutes (walking) to the bakery, 8 minutes to the train, and 15 minutes to the grocery store and library. I have no idea what the schools are like, but we have a year and a half to figure that out (kindergarten starts at age 3 here). In the meantime this will be a convenient home base from which to explore the area, with easy access to Paris (about 20 minutes by train) and to a great outdoor recreation area with bike paths and hiking (about 25 minutes by train).

Because we may want to travel both with animals and bikes, I was curious to see what the rules were for local travel. I have seen several dogs (and bikes) on the train (including a full size labradoodle on someone's lap in downtown Paris at 11pm). It turns out that on the Paris metro system, no dogs are allowed, but on the RER trains (that pass through the heart of Paris), leashed dogs are welcome. You must, however, purchase each dog a "reduced fare ticket", same as a child. Bikes are allowed during off-peak hours. Awesome on both counts!

That's it for the apartment.  We also get a basement storage room and garage (for bikes and strollers) which will be incredibly helpful as we cram into 660 square feet.  Obviously it will be nice to get our furniture, kitchen accessories, and extra clothes, skis, and bikes - but oddly enough I don't really miss anything that's packed away.  As much as we pared down (viciously!) before leaving, I have a feeling that once our container arrives, we'll have the urge to pare down our stuff even more.  Perhaps I will get to be as familiar to the Goodwill collection guys (or the equivalent) here as I was to the Goodwill staff in Portland!

As far as plans for the rest of the weekend, I am feeling the need to just curl up and do absolutely nothing at all.  I'm sure part of it is the weather, and part of it is that I miss my wife and son terribly (listening to Christmas-themed Vinyl Cafe podcasts is probably not helping, either).  Two weeks is a long time to go without seeing your loves, especially when one is pregnant and one is just a wee one: a lot happens in 14 days.  I feel like the little one will have grown two inches, and that L's belly will have grown so much.  Nothing like a little absence to make you remember how much you have to be grateful for.

- E

From Bures to the Marché de Noël

At breakfast this morning I learned about the Christmas markets that are set up all over Paris during this time of year.  The largest of the bunch is on the Champs Elysées - 170 temporary vendor chalets are set up along both sides of the boulevard, along with carousels, a small ice skating rink, kids' roller coasters, and a "museum" boasting 200 animated exotic animals.  Needless to say I skipped the last attraction, but I did decide to head into the city to check out the market.

While L is most definitely the photographer in the family, I did bring along our small point-and-shoot camera to give all of you a sense of where I'm living now (Bures), along with a few photos from the market.  Below is my temporary apartment (top floor, right side).  It's incredibly well set up, with a few luxuries (electric towel-warming rack!) that I know we won't have in our apartment.

Résidhome Bures sur Yvette

 
From here, it's a 10 minute walk through the woods into the village of Bures, where I catch the RER-B line into Paris.

Chemin de la Fontaine Saint Matthieu

RER-B station, Bures-sur-Yvette

From the Bures station, it's about 30 minutes to the center of Paris.  There is an extensive metro network through the city, but from many of the city center stations it's just as easy to walk.  And since walking builds up an appetite, I decided to stop along the street and get a snack: another sandwich!  I know that at some point these amazing little bundles of meat and bread will lose their appeal - but until then, I remain amazed at how inexpensive and delicious they are.  And they're everywhere!  Today's selection came with butter and not mayonnaise, but no matter: it was still delectable.  The scenery at lunch wasn't bad, either.

Sandwich!  Nom nom nom...

On to the market: today was gray and cloudy, and I have a feeling that the place feels a lot more magical after dark when all of the Christmas lights are lit, but nonetheless it was nice to walk around, people-watch, and check out the food and wares for sale at the various booths.

Eiffel Tower shaped lollipops

There were typical street-fair foods (cotton candy, candy apples, crepes, waffles, candy) and typical street-fair stuff to buy (scarves, jewelry, cheap toys, anything and everything with "Paris" written on it).  Lots of french fries and hot dogs, but also onion soup, tartiflette (a potato, bacon, and cheese casserole), roasted chestnuts, and even raw oyster bars set up among the booths (don't worry, Mom, I steered clear of the raw oysters).  My favorite booths held incredible wheels of cheese, cured meats and sausages, and other salty delights - although at this point I was still full from my sandwich and chose only to partake of the free samples.  I did, however, give in and try the vin chaud (hot wine).  Spiced with cinnamon and orange slices, it was absolutely delicious!

Raw oysters with fresh lemon served at the open-air market

 

More meat and cheese!  Nom nom nom!

My vin chaud.  Yep, the tree has been sprayed with fake snow for dramatic effect.

 
When L and the little one arrive, it will be fun to head back up here with them and take a carousel ride, maybe try out the skating rink, or ride the ferris wheel.  I'm sure that the market will continue to get more and more crowded as Christmas approaches, but since we will not have any of our stuff by Christmas (it will still be in a container arriving via the Atlantic), it might be nice to see so much holiday kitsch.

Tomorrow also marks my first real day of work (finally!), which is both exciting and bittersweet.  We waited a long time before my work permit and our visas were finalized, and it was incredible to have so many unhurried days with the little one.  However, we can't both be stay at home moms, and I am looking forward to starting a challenging job with an incredible team.  I figure that with only 660 square feet or so to maintain, we can't possibly spend our weekends cleaning the house, which means we should have plenty of time to explore our new city...

- E

Happy Thanksgiving!

24 hours and ~140 pounds of luggage later, I'm sitting in my hotel in Bures-sur-Yvette waiting for my Thanksgiving feast (Chinese takeout) to be delivered.  While I am not able to celebrate with L and the little one, who are still in Portland, I certainly have a lot to be grateful for over the past 24 hours:

- Our friends A & C who volunteered (really, insisted) to take me to the airport at 4:00am so that the little one could keep sleeping
- Easy, on-time flights from Portland to Vancouver to Montreal
- Family supper (with my parents, brother, and sister in law) at the airport in Montreal: ribs, beer, and chicken wings!
- Excellent flight from Montreal to Paris.  My seatmates were nonexistent, so I had an entire row to myself to stretch out, lie down, and even nap a little.

Travel up to this point was easy-peasy.  From the airport in Paris, I took the train (RER-B) south to the town where my hotel was located.  I had used google maps before leaving to map out a walking route from the train station to my hotel: google said it should take me ~10 minutes.  Even with luggage to haul, that seemed manageable.  Unfortunately, the walking path was rocky, pitted, and half-paved... not great for dragging suitcases!  I somehow managed to veer off course and my 10 minute walk turned into a 45 minute sweatfest, at the end of which I found myself on the corner of a street I didn't recognize, with no phone service, no map, and no one around.  This brings me to another thing I am thankful for: the kindness of strangers.  A guy stopped to ask me if I needed help with my bags, helped me find my hotel, and dragged my suitcases all the way to the hotel's lobby.  Turns out he's an assistant professor at the local university, spent some time doing a postdoc in the USA, and is married to an english-speaker.  I am so grateful to him for making today a little easier!

On the docket for tomorrow: open a bank account, visit 3 apartments, and hopefully pick up the keys to my rental car.  Meanwhile, I will enjoy my Chinese take-out feast, watch the French news, unpack my suitcases and try to fall asleep at a reasonable hour. 

- E