Travel
Time out in Taghazout Morocco
As I write this we are in Morocco on vacation and we are staying someplace where there is nothing to do BUT relax – and surf. I was really sick before we came – was advised by the doctor not to travel at all and if I did to sit around and do nothing while here. Hell of a prescription. Relaxing in the sun for a week. I guess I can try and follow her orders.
French Work Visas for Idiots
I’m trying to think about how I can tell you this story in a short format. Because really, it deserves a bottle of wine and a half an hour. To start, I will commend my company for their efforts to make this transition as easy as possible. I know we have had it much better than most. Help with the apartment search, assistance with the visa, the bank… for all this, I’m very grateful. Especially now that I know how hard it is even with all the help in the world.
Here is a short vignette about getting our visas. I call it, “Endurance.”
Fête de la Musique and Surfing Biarritz
It was a better week in week 2. On Thursday night we hit the Ogilvy summer party where the husband made surf-love to a new friend when he was invited to Biarritz for the weekend - some sun and some surf. As of this report he is not back yet but I expect to see a blissed-out, glassy-eyed, lover of waves fully rejuvenated later tonight. That is, if he can get to our apartment.
It’s Like Those French Have a Different Word For EVERYTHING.
Anyone out there old enough to recall Steve Martin’s Wild and Crazy Guy standup album which included a brilliant piece on being in France? “Oeuf means egg, chapeau means hat. It’s like those French have a different word for everything.” Welcome to our lives in France.
International Travel with Kids
Ok, so here’s a good time: Pack 8 bags and 4 carry-ons. Pack snacks (including candy) in your carry on and then force two children under 6 to behave for over 12 hours in basically the same seat.
What to take to Europe from the US?
In the interest of minimizing some of the pain and suffering that is bound for my husband and kids while I, the only one of us who speaks French, am at work and they are navigating a new foreign city - I asked around about what we should bring from the states. What items can [...]
Work-related travel
We recently pitched a huge piece of business based in a place that is very hard to get to. We didn’t win, but while we were waiting to find out I spent a lot of time trying to figure out what I would do if we did. How would I manage my life knowing that I would be traveling a lot. Probably, leaving in the afternoon, spending the night and not to getting home before 11pm the next night and doing this at least once a week. What a mess.
Stuffed
Funny how one wishes for more storage. I’ve often thought and said, “My house has NO storage” or “Boy, if only we had another closet.” Really I should have been wishing for someone to come and smack me upside the head for holding on to a bunch of shit we don’t need.
The big news
Just before the holidays the owners of our company started to talk about staffing a resource in Paris to service a new client and lead our European team. Since Paul and I met, we have talked about how great it would be to move abroad for a year or two when our children are young. Note that we talked about this before we HAD children and had any clue what this adventure would involve.
